Terrafusion
by Ellastasia
Summary: A story about Freya after the events of Final Fantasy IX. Freya has secluded herself at Daguerreo to fight her inner demons when she is suddenly confronted with disturbing events plaguing the Secret Library. With the help of some friends, she must investigate the source of these ominous happenings. Rated T for slight language.
1. Prologue

Oracle Sofie sat herself down on one of the plush seats in the far corner of the reading room. Finally, she had found the book she'd been searching for these past long two months: The Eidolon and I. Nearby, three acolytes quietly argued over the myth of the serpent Daguerreo that purportedly protected these parts. The fountains in the main room echoed throughout this room like every room here, its echoes reaching most of the catacombs of this library in the mountain.

With the echoes around her and the good book in her hands, Oracle Sofie turned to the first page. The steady slow drips from just outside the doorway of the reading room got louder and louder in her ears. Her eyes got heavier and heavier, until the soft lashes languidly drooped over her soft green eyes. Her head fell forward and the book slid slowly but surely down her green gown and onto the floor.

Freya picked up the tussled book from the floor. She smiled at the dozing Sofie, gentle woman that she was, and placed it back in her lap. Oracle Sofie could never concentrate on a single book for long, her preferred habit of distraction being getting a snooze. Aside from Sofie, the reading room was empty, the dinner bell having rung an hour ago. The scientists here enjoyed their meals to the fullest, and a good portion of them retired to their rooms after filling their bellies.

Freya ate sparingly as always. The professors and doctors here didn't mind their Cleyran and Burmecian tenants. They said it enhanced the atmosphere.

She sighed and went to the balcony where she rested her elbows on the ledge and gazed at the falling water.

She remained here in Daguerreo after Garnet's coronation and reunion with Zidane. Sir Fratley had taken up the responsibility of rebuilding Burmecia, and in misery, Freya departed from him as he was no longer the man she once knew. It hurt too much to see him, cohort with him, to remember all the special moments that only existed for a single soul. He had the same face, and that was the only resemblance to the Sir Fratley she knew. The moment he began dressing otherwise in a more stately manner, she couldn't bear the missing memories any longer.

She couldn't say she regretted leaving him behind. She still found herself drifting into memories with him, but her new life was peaceful and she felt useful picking up after the preoccupied scholars. A few intellects took interest in her part in Gaia history, but otherwise no one looked at her any differently than before she helped save Gaia from catastrophe. And that's the way she wanted it. At last, she was free.

Her former mates had found their peace as well. Zidane returned to his theatres in Lindblum. As much as he adored Garnet, and she him, he was too restless to be cooped up in the castle. They visited each other often. Quina, on the other hand, reveled in being the eccentric and master chef of Alexandria. Steiner and Beatrix loyally remained at the castle. Their wedding was a small one, and last Freya had heard, Beatrix was expecting.

Vivi's children passed on his legacy. Indeed, many a book and play were written of his life and character, as was deserving of him. He was the spirit of Gaia and many aspired after his gentle nature. Eiko, now 8 years old, transformed into a gentle spirit, much like her older kindred Garnet. She was studious and prim, always a smile or a scowl on her face, never in between. Amarant disappeared into the land once more after Garnet's coronation. Freya swore she saw Lani the head-hunter desperately chasing after him after Garnet's official coronation.

The world was a quiet place. Alexandria had been rebuilt quickly, and Lindblum was not much farther behind. Steam conversion was generally easier than anticipated, and the city of technology thrived and expanded. On the mainland, the libraries and academics belonged to Alexandria, but in Lindblum, anyone could be anything.

Burmecia was slower to rebuild, but it was with slow and steady pride that the meticulous city was being raised from its rubble. A memorial was placed by the ruins of Cleyra, and Garnet visited it often. Treno remained in its pleasures, still the popular place for all the vices and awesomeness the nobles secretly desired. The Gargant Roo was now in steady use between Treno and Alexandria, and its steady use compelled a fantastic redesign.

Outside the mainland, all remained as before. In the Outer Continent, the elves of Conde Petie barred anyone passing through unless they desired to wed, and the initial influx of sightseers trickled down out of distaste. The Iifa Tree remained a tangled mess of roots and melancholy, and most turned their eyes should they happen to encounter it. The visitors to the Black Mage Village declined as well. Some Genomes had left to live in the cities of the mainland, and Mikoto, Zidane and Kuja's sister, remained as the leader of this quiet and illusionary place.

The Lost Continent remained lost in its desert sand and canyon. Oilvert and Ipsen's Castle remained alive in Daguerrean text and lore, but otherwise it was a place abandoned as in history past. Esto Gaza of the Forgotten Continent remained the same. Its visitors were few and far between, their religion barely holding on, unlike their high priest who remained as unhelpful and cantankerous as before.

Most believed Terra to have burned to its demise, and all were eager to put an ugly chapter of Gaia behind them. Terra's potential invasion, as well as the conniving machinations of Kuja, reminded Gaians to remain on guard. Lindblum's observatories kept a constant watch on the skies, and a new chapter of academics in astronomy sprouted up. The eight heroes slowly digressed from their status, wanting nothing more than to carry on with their lives.


	2. Chapter 1

Like every evening, it was quiet. Oracle Sofie stayed snoozing, heavens knew since when. Freya had spent most of the day following up on her research for an elderly scholar making use of her speed and thoroughness. The day being a success, she received a small thanks and he went on his way. The smallest gesture meant so much. She couldn't stand the initial crowds that had surrounded her and followed her around after the amazing events of almost two years past. The first year had been filled with picking up the pieces from where they lay, and this last year was to settle into Daguerreo for some much-needed peace.

And peace had been achieved. It felt good after all she'd been through and all the politics she'd played a part in, to know that the most traumatic event in this mountain library was a missing lens or a torn binding. It comforted her. She remained in the same room she had been first given. It was only meant for a traveler, but it wound up being her residence. It was small but cozy, barely long enough to fit her eight-foot trident, but during the first few months the weapon slowly disappeared underneath various accoutrements and knick-knacks. In the beginning months, she had dug out a window, which eventually led to her building a small balcony outside on the mountainside. Many scholars came to enjoy its view, preferring to use her balcony to get a breath of fresh air rather than go out the front door of the cave.

It was better that her trident remain hidden as it inadvertently was. The Dragon's Hair and the sights it had seen was all but a distant memory now. She was grateful that the nightmares had finally subsided. The less she thought of them, the less they came around.

Watching the slow-moving waters beneath her, she started to hear the pitter patter of raindrops. She squeezed her eyes shut and gripped the ledge. Raising the imaginary wall inside her mind, she forced her eyes open and desperately scanned the waters. There. _That railing needs work_ , she made a mental note for her tasks tomorrow. _And that one, too._

"Freya!"

She turned, watching the mustachioed man amble down the hall toward her.

"Dr. Bani," Freya said when he neared.

He came to a stop and peered up at her. "Your eyes," he sniffed. "They're all crazy-like again."

"It's nothing," she lowered her gaze. _Is it so obvious?_

"Pah! Well I have just the distraction for you. Come! It is complete!"

"Your manuscript?"

"Indeed!" He clapped his hands and turned back to the circular ledge. Dr. Bani was one of the livelier of the scholars here, but he had the unfortunate habit of ignoring everyone unless he needed something from them. For the past few months, he had been visiting Freya almost on the regular, interviewing her about her first-hand knowledge of Terra and what she saw there. He would ask questions, she would reply, and he would never explain. Most of his questions lately were beyond her comprehension, and he would shrug and walk away without a farewell, only to return to her a week later with a set of new incomprehensible questions. He would never respond to her questions, as if he didn't hear her.

But Freya didn't mind. Thinking of Terra as a science subject was better than pondering the things that had happened there.

She followed him down the lift to the main level where most of the dormitories were. She had been invited into a few, and while they varied in size and dampness, all were in disarray, much like their owners. She'd never been invited into Dr. Bani's abode, so when he opened the door and led her down a short dim hall, she was surprised when she was led into a spacious large room with a high ceiling. Most dormitories were poorly lit and cramped. Books stacked in high piles everywhere in Dr. Bani's abode, shelves covered every wall space except for one area near a grandiose desk. A large parchment was tacked onto the wall with various scribbles and doodles covering its surface.

It looked like a map of sorts, but she couldn't be sure. Dr. Bani was at his desk, pushing aside papers and writing utensils and then looking up expectantly at her, an eerie grin on his face.

"You've completed your book on Terra, I assume?" Freya questioned. She could never be too sure with these scholars. Their train of thought didn't quite match the average folk outside this library.

"Shush!" He beckoned her over. "I don't need the whole dosh-garn cave knowing!"

 _They all know you've been on a hunt for anything related to Terra._ She kept this to herself and made her way to his desk. Daguerreo's library included those inside the dormitories, this she learned a long time ago.

"Look!" He suddenly raised a large hard-covered book to her face and she had to resist jumping back in surprise. "This is it! My months of research and knowledge, all in one volume!"

She smiled and tilted her head to read the title: "An Assessment of Terra."

"There's none other like it?" She asked politely.

"Certainly not. It is complete, now take a look, you will be the first."

"I'm honored," Freya bowed. Why he chose her was beyond her, but she felt flattered nonetheless. She took the book from his shivering hands and she took a moment to admire the filigreed cover before opening it to the Table of Contents.

She skimmed its chapters: Where it Came From, How it Prospered and Survived, Legends and Mythos...Black Box, Pandora's Box... She frowned and looked up at him. "Where did you find all this information?"

Dr. Bani crossed his arms, his universal sign of silence. She sighed inside and looked back down at the contents. Footnotes. Would it be insulting if she skipped to the end? Only in fiction. She went to the back of the book and found pages upon pages of reference books, some not relating to Terra at all. "First copy?"

"First and last, indeed."

"Would you allow me to read it?"

Arms still crossed, he tapped his foot and narrowed his eyes. "I was going to place it in your protection, actually."

Freya couldn't hide the surprise on her face. "Me? Why?"

"I trust you. You're not a thief like everyone else here."

She shook her head. "That's a high presumption, Dr. Bani. I would never steal, true, but it saddens me to hear that you would put your fellow scholars down so low."

He snorted. "You're not one of us, Miss Freya. You don't covet words and accomplishments. You yourself loathe your own accomplishments! So there, I leave this to you."

"What would you have me do with this gift?"

"Burn it, if you like! But read it first. Now that I am accomplished, you must be going. Good night."

"...!" She nodded good night. It was best not to pursue any confusing matter with the scholars. Clutching the book to her chest, she exited the dormitory and quietly closed the door.

The skylight above the entrance in the cave indicated that nighttime was well underway. Her room was on the fourth level, and there was no one in sight. Curious of the odd references in Dr. Bani's book, she decided to take the fastest way to her room.

She waded out into the water for clearance, then in a single leap, landed atop the fourth level rail. She hopped down to the floor and looked around quickly. It wasn't that the residents here didn't know what she was capable of, it's just that she had kept to the standard mode of travel for so long, that it felt almost odd to use her dragoon abilities.

As she walked down the hall, she heard a door open below. _That sounds like Dr. Bani's door_ , her sensitive ears told her. She stopped and peeked down to the main level.

Sure enough, Dr. Bani was scurrying around the lower level. Surprisingly, he went up the ramp to the altar and made his way down the raised walkway to the entrance of the cave. An owl followed in his wake.

 _Strange..._

She slid the book into her coat and hurried to her room. Thankfully no one had fallen asleep on her outdoor balcony and her eyes immediately adjusted to the darkness outside. The moon was barely a sliver, but it shed enough light for her to see Dr. Bani scuttling across the bridge. She didn't see the bird anywhere.

 _What is he doing?_


	3. Chapter 2

_Where would he be going at this hour?_ His parting words were odd, but that wasn't abnormal, for all the scholars here possessed one or plenty of quirks. Authors abounded in this library, but Dr. Bani was known to be one of the finest. She saw him clearly in the dim moonlight, fervently running across the bridge to the open plateau beyond.

Freya waited until he reached the rarely traveled dirt path into the plateau, and she kicked off her balcony. She wasn't one to spy, but this matter was troubling, especially at an hour where most of the scholars were contentedly snoozing.

She easily found two rocky outcrops to accompany her and she landed silently onto the stone bridge. And there was the owl in the distance. It was in the north, and as she landed at the entrance of the library, she saw Dr. Bani spy it as well. It seemed to beckon to him. A moment later, as it hovered in the air for a moment, she felt its gaze upon her before swooping away to the north.

 _That's no ordinary owl_ , Freya thought. Dr. Bani, a small figure in the distance, deserted the path and began running through the low grass, following the owl. _And why is he following that creature?_

She waited until he was a distance away. His shuffled gait was easy to pursue and she would let him lead her to wherever he was going without too much effort on her part. But what could possibly be out in this open field where not even a single tree grew? The Library of Daguerreo sat atop a high plateau, tall cliffs with over a four hundred foot drop to the lower level forest of Sacrobless Island. She had a peculiar feeling that this unnatural occurrence somehow had something to do with his recently completing his book on Terra. Or was this something about how he had managed to find such odd information on Terra? She didn't keep track of the coming and goings of the scholars here, but it was common knowledge that Dr. Bani was not one to travel.

Now that he was far enough away, almost halfway to the northern cliffs that faced the distant Forgotten Continent, Freya began sprinting across the bridge. He hadn't veered from his path, and she had lost sight of the owl.

He reached the cliff's edge in a few minutes. Should he turn around, Freya accepted that she would never be able to conceal herself, and she kept running and didn't stop until she neared him.

He was still bent over presumably catching his breath, only a few steps from the cliff's edge. _I am rather out of shape myself_ , Freya mused. _To think that I had ran across the world many times over with Zidane without getting winded. Well maybe a few times..._

"Dr. Bani!" She came to a stop a few yards from him, huffing.

He jerked up when he heard her voice, his expression hard to read in the minimal moonlight.

"Dr. Bani," she tried her best not to sound as tired and cramped as she truly felt. "What is happening?"

He had almost recovered his breath. "The future has changed, Miss Freya."

She tilted her head. "The future is always unsure, I don't understand."

"This planet is doomed. This time, it cannot be remedied."

"I don't like the way you are speaking," Freya took a couple steps toward him, trying to see his face beneath the cowl of unkempt hair. "Gaia is thriving, why would you say we are doomed?"

"'Soon, the blue shall fade, as it is even now. One shall come with the tale of hope and prosperity, and with it, deceit and treachery.' It was said, and it is here."

"'The blue shall fade?'" He could only be speaking of the Crystal... right? "That time has already passed," Freya said slowly. She took another step closer to him. "The blue will not fade."

"Yes, this has happened in the past, and it is happening again."

Freya shook her head. "There is no Mist. Terra is gone."

"You needn't see it. But the protectors of this planet are returning. You do not have to fear, Miss Freya. Read the book, and have faith. The protectors are returning."

 _Protectors?_ "Dr. Bani," she started. But he turned his back to her and began walking. There were only a few steps to the cliff. _Is he really...?_ "Dr. Bani!"

"Do not fear!" The scholar called out. And he took another step and dropped from view, the dark midnight sky replacing where he once stood.

"Dr. Bani!" Freya leapt forward to the cliff's edge, falling on her stomach with her hand reaching out into the empty air. Her first glimpse made her squeeze her eyes shut and turn her head.

For a long moment, her mind was black. Empty. A welcome void, darkness erasing all her thoughts. Her head began to swirl, feeling pulses in her brain. Her hands clenched, nails digging into her palm.

She gasped for air, her eyes opening wide.

It all came rushing back. She couldn't bear to look down. Retracting herself slowly from the cliff, she sat back on her haunches with her head bent down in anguish. The night was silent, the waves below barely audible, the breeze nonexistent. So it was easy to hear the oddity of a flap of wings from below the cliff. One flap, a pause, another push of air, silence.

Through the brim of her hat, she could see the owl flying away, catching the air beneath its wings to keep its momentum. _What are you?_

Of course Drake was still up, colloquially speaking, flopped nearly sideways on the cool stone floor in the corner of the platform. He said he was there before Burmecia fell, and she believed him. Drunks were not a common sight in the dark wet alleyways of the Kingdom in its prime, most being shooed out if they didn't mend themselves.

She sat down beside him, and luckily at this hour, no scholars were around to throw disapproving stares at her direction for affiliating with the local inebriate.

"Ah, Miss Freya," Drake slurred, propping himself up on an elbow and squinting open a single eye.

"My apologies for bothering you, but I'm afraid I will be joining you tonight."

"What, hm? I wasn't sleeping. Here," he reached behind him and pulled out a flask that was nearly full.

Freya received it with a nod and took a swig. She hardly felt the burn and took another swig.

"Well hey," Drake sat up a little more and opened both eyes. "Haven't seen you in a long time, and now here you are more miserable than ever."

He had a habit of never completing his thoughts. Not many conversed with him, so maybe that was his way of keeping a conversation. She paused a moment, hoping he'd ask his question rather than making her assume, and after a moment of silence, she took another swig and set it down. "Something terrible has just happened."

"What's it this time?"

She didn't have the strength to lift her gaze from the stone floor. "A scholar here has just... passed."

"Ai," he reached behind him and pulled out a bottle, lifted it to the air, then took a swig and set it down on the stone with a loud clunk. "Who may it be?"

"Dr. Bani."

"Terra ate him up too now, did it?"

"Excuse me?" She frowned and finally looked up at him. Drake may be drunk all hours of the day, every day of the year, but he had an uncanny knowledge about everyone here as well as knowing all its going ons.

Drake shook his head. "All this nonsense about Terra lately. See that's the problem with you living in a box like this cave here."

"You never move from this spot, unlike myself, yet I don't know what you're speaking of."

The waterfall trickled noisily behind them. She watched him take another swig, then she took another one herself.

"Who else has been talking about Terra? Terra's gone, it doesn't exist anymore. I understand the academics and curiosity of it, but ..."

"..."

"Dr. Bani stepped off a cliff not even an hour ago Drake. Please tell me what is going on."

"Ai," Drake shook his head fervently this time and took a long draft. He swiveled his head to look at her and Freya could swear he was looking behind her, not at her. "Terra talk is secret business, you know."

"I know. Dr. Bani just wrote a codex about it, and there are things in there I've never even heard of. Where did he get that information?"

"I'll be damned if he made it up," Drake shrugged.

"Shame on you!"

"Indeed," he nodded. "Question is, why'd he kill himself after writing it?"

She felt as if she hadn't even had a conversation with him. So she took another swig. "Who else has talked about Terra here?"

"In this cave? You. And Dr. Bani. And some select few, but there is one... what's his name... Doc... eh... Doc Fran... cis. Francis. Yup." He nodded. "He knows a lot about a lot. He's the one to talk to."

She stared at him for a moment. _How does he know these things?_

"He's still putzing around somewhere. He's one of them night owls."

 _Owls_. "This may be a strange question, but have you seen any owls in here lately?"

"Eh... Hm. Nope, can't say that I have."

 _But one just flew by your sleeping head an hour ago. I don't understand this man._ She emptied her flask. "Thank you for your advice."

"Do I tell them about Doc Bani tomorrow?"

"You know they won't believe you," she sighed.

"They won't care if you tell them."

She frowned. In a weird and sad way, he was right. "Just let it be." She got up and nodded to him.

"In the upper library, Miss Freya."

"Thank you."

The liquor was strong, but strangely it had no effect. She focused on the third tier and jumped, landing atop the rail without a sound. She stepped off lightly and made for the entrance to the inner library.


	4. Chapter 3

She had seen him only a few times within her years here. In fact there were many scholars and hermits here that she saw only on rare occasions. The lone man in the room was standing in front of a shelf, his reading glasses almost falling off his nose, and was practically half of Freya's height. She approached him, noting she had no apprehension in approaching this stranger. _I must be in shock_ , she figured.

"Excuse me," she said quietly, hoping not to frighten him out of his concentration.

He turned his head quickly, his glasses clattering to the floor. "Who are ye?" He squeaked, his eyes small and bright.

She quickly knelt down and picked up his glasses, proffering them to him as she got up.

"What's that?" He scowled down at her open hand.

"Your glasses."

"Those aren't mine, I don't need glasses, who do ye think I am?"

She opened her mouth, then promptly closed it. "Would you be Dr. Francis?"

"Who are ye?"

"I'm Freya," she said as she folded up the glasses and kept them in her hand.

"I know no Freya," he frowned.

 _This isn't turning out well, but then again, nothing does._ "Would you know of a Dr. Bani?"

He scoffed and turned back to his tome. "Pretentious fool," he muttered. "Now where was I..."

She sighed.

"Confound it!" He suddenly slammed the tome shut. "Damned dampness makes everything bleed onto the pages! I swear that Daggi, I'll make him pay!"

This was Drake's recommendation upon the topic of Terra? "Perhaps these would help?" Freya held up the reading glasses again.

He looked down from the corner of his eye, then twitched and snatched them quickly out of her hand, stuffing them in his pocket. "Say, Freya, are ye a thief in these parts?"

"Oh dear, no."

"Ah, pity, I would have had many favors for you. I'd ah given you a penny or two for them, too."

"No, no," Freya shook her head. "That would not do at all."

He peered up at her. "Are you sure?"

She nodded.

"Are ye some relative of that drunken fool down there or something?"

"No, but we come from the same country."

"I can tell that much! Who do ye think I am!"

"Are you Dr. Francis?"

"Why do ye want to know?"

She took a moment for a deep breath. "Because I have just received a book about Terra-"

"That damned fool! Now he's done it!" He stamped his foot. "I told him to stop! Pretentious! No good trouble-maker!"

She looked at him in wonder. "You speak of Dr. Bani?"

"Who else!" He glared at her.

"Sir, this man has just thrown himself off the cliff outside-"

"Of course he has! Damned fool."

"How did you...?" She shook her head. "I need to know why."

"No, ye don't, now run off will ye?" He waved his hands at her.

She stared at him, unsure of how to react. He stared back at her.

"No go on, thief, run away why don't ye, go on." He shooed at her again.

 _This was foolish,_ she told herself.

She nodded to him, turned around and left the room. She took the standard method of taking the stairs to her room on the fourth level. Drake had fallen over again. How he managed to know certain peculiarities while being oblivious to the obvious, she would never know. The rest of the library was silent and she quietly made it across the balcony and closed her door.

In the silence, she wound up the rotary lamp beside her bed and sat down on the thin hard mattress. She reached into her coat and pulled out the book recently completed by the now deceased Dr. Bani. She ran her hands across the cover in memory of his work. An Assessment of Terra. She opened to the Table of Contents and found what puzzled her. Black Box. Pandora's Box. She traced the script handwriting to its corresponding page number and carefully turned the crisp pages. The image of the owl flying away haunted her mind's eye and she shook her head. _No ordinary owl._ Owls didn't reside here on Sacrobless Island, only seagulls and far-traveling birds who took advantage of this lone place to raise their young. But that was a season ago and the fledglings had all grown up and departed in search of more plentiful feeding grounds.

Winter was approaching, and while the elements were minimal, shorter days and longer nights meant darker hours and cold days.

Just as she focused on the chapter, she heard a rustle behind her door and looked up just before there was a knock on her door. This was unusual at such a late hour. She sighed and put the book down on her nightstand, taking mental note of the page she needed to return to. She got up and cracked open her door. A scholar whose name she did not know peered back at her.

"Miss Freya?"

"Yes," she replied. "Who may you be?"

"I am Dr. Mokts, forgive the intrusion at this hour but I was a friend of Dr. Bani and if I may speak to you in private?"

For a scholar, he had a hard time phrasing his sentences. She nodded and opened the door to let him in. His eyes darted around her room and returned to her once she closed the door.

"Dr. Bani has been working on a particular manuscript for quite some time now, and I was curious if you possessed some knowledge of when he would complete it?"

He wasted no time in getting to the point. There were hardly pretenses of small talk in this place, she reminded herself. "What manuscript would you be referencing to?" It wasn't wise to jump to conclusions here, that she had learned the hard way. It was common for all the scholars to hold multiple projects, and if a scholar spent his time with only one manuscript, it was frowned upon. And insulting if one presumed such singular devotion.

Dr. Mokts hunched his shoulders up and replied in a whisper, "It is of Terra, the lost planet. He refuses to show or discuss this book with anyone, but we have heard him talking to you about it..." his eyes trailed away in what looked like guilt.

"He asked me questions about Terra, that is all. I could not answer most of his curiosities, I am sorry to say."

"He would not speak of it to you?"

She studied his eyes, shifty as they were. There was an air to him that made her rather uncomfortable. "I am sorry, I cannot say."

His eyes met hers and a flash of anger glittered back at her for a moment.

She looked down and felt her chest tighten. "I am sorry Dr. Mokts, I must confess to you that Dr. Bani is with us no longer." She flinched when he suddenly gripped her arm, then his hand sprang back in embarrassment.

"What do you mean?"

"He has passed from Gaia."

"When?"

Was that concern or desperation? "Tonight."

"Fah!" Dr. Mokts threw his hands up. "Of course!" His eyes gleamed back at her. "Then it is finished!"

"..."

He shook his head quickly. "Were you there? What did he say?"

"He said 'do not fear,'" she replied slowly.

"'Do not fear?'" He echoed, his brows furrowing. "'Do not fear,'" he mumbled, his forefinger rubbing his chin. "I see."

"Dr. Mokts, if I may be so bold, but the hour is late and I wish to be alone now." His interest in Terra and morbid interest in Dr. Bani's death increased the awkwardness of his presence.

"Yes, yes," he muttered and began for the door. She hurried to open it before he would walk into it, and she closed it almost eagerly behind him. Her eyes went to Dr. Bani's book on her nightstand. _Why is he so curious about it?_ She sat down on her bed and opened the book again to the chapter on the Black Box.

It began with a lulling introduction of the process of Terra's fusion spell, and hardly a page into the chapter, her eyes felt heavy. She couldn't recall the last sentence she had read. Dr. Bani disappearing over the cliff flashed through her mind. _No point in trying to read this right now. I must rest, if only for a short while._ Still rather disturbed from Dr. Mokts' appearance, she tucked the book under her pillow out of sight and laid down.

The first rays of sunlight opened her eyes and she sat up. A wave of nausea made her hold her breath. Distorted images from the night before darted across her vision. _Something's wrong_ , she knew immediately. The nausea passed as soon as it had come.

 _I've felt that before_. She turned around and lifted her pillow.

Nothing but a blank sheet. The book was gone.

 _Sleep spell. Dr. Mokts._

She put her feet on the floor. A loud pounding from the door made her heart jump into her throat.

"Who is it?" It hurt to speak with the adrenaline rushing so suddenly.

"Let me in!"

Dr. Francis?

She took a couple breaths. "It's open."

The door opened quickly and sure enough, the small frame of Dr. Francis ambled into the room and he shut the door behind him. He stared at her. "Ye look a mess."

"Someone put a sleep spell on me."

"You're a thief?"

She shook her head in exasperation. _What is with all the thief references lately!_ "Not at all, Dr. Francis."

"Who told ye my name?"

"Drake told me who you are."

"Oh did he now, that blathering idiot, thinks he knows me now does he."

"Dr. Francis," she rubbed her hand across her eyes. "Someone stole Dr. Bani's book from me while I slept-"

"Well I've been up all this time and I been thinking about that book, but I don't have it so don't ye look at meh."

"I didn't say - oh nevermind."

"And," his voice screeched and he pointed a finger at her. "It's a damn good thing it's gone. I hope it's drowned itself in a lake somewhere because that's all it's good for. A good drowning."

"Sir, I am very confused." Her head began to ache and she looked at the floor.

"That book is a curse! A curse! Daggi help who has it now, they'll be throwing themself off a cliff now too. But maybe that's a good thing..." He looked up with a contemplative smirk.

"You may be right," she said though she didn't believe that in the slightest. "But-"

"You know what's your problem Freya?"

She looked at him.

"You're too boring. Get some life in ye, would ye?"

"..."

"Go on, what ye thinkin'? Say it!"

The lump in her throat wouldn't move. "I think I've never met a professor like yourself."

"That's what I like to hear," he nodded. "Now what shall we do about this book?"

"'We?'"

"Damn it!" He stomped his foot. "We got a thief here, and I have to say I'd let it go around these parts for a while if it'll kill off these fools in here, but that would just be part of the plan now wouldn't it."

"What plan?"

"The curse! Ye boring _and_ dense, Freya, just like everyone else around here."

"...I don't understand."

"Terra's not dead, ye have to know that much."

"I don't believe that."

"Ack!" He clapped his hands. "What in Daggi have ye been doing here then?"

"Dr. Francis, I have never formally met you in the year I've been here, how do you know anything about what I've been doing?"

"Ye've been thievin'."

She bit her tongue. "That's enough with the accusations, Dr. Francis."

"Ye telling me that ye're hiding from the truth then?"

"Terra is dead."

"So ye didn't read a single word of Dr. Bani's book."

"..."

"I see. Allow me to summarize his blathering: Terra is not dead."

"Then you must know about the Black Box and Pandora's Box?"

"Inane theories, that's all."

"How do you know all this?"

"We professors know a thing or two, ye know. I known Dr. Bani a long time, and I hated him. Then he went and got that curse on him and now he's dead, very dead. I checked."

She started at this. "You...?"

He waved his hand. "What'd he say to ye?"

"He told me that the protectors were coming, and that I need not fear."

"Yes...mhm, that's right." Dr. Francis nodded. "Tales of hope and deceit indeed. If ah were ye Freya," he turned to her. "I would get out of here as soon as ye can before the curse takes ye too."

"I would not let a curse take over this place!"

"Ah don't worry, it won't happen that fast. But I'm leaving now anyway, I suggest ye do the same."

"You're leaving Daguerreo?"

"Of course I am! What about ye?"

Leave Daguerreo, her new home? And with a supposedly cursed book traveling through its magnificent corridors? "Why should I?"

"I just told ye why! Boring, dense, and stupid!"

"I don't believe it."

"An unbeliever, eh? Maybe ah stick around a day so I can say I told ye so!"

"You said it wouldn't happen that fast. And if someone else dies today, I wouldn't leave until I found that book and burned it as Dr. Bani told me to."

"He told ye that eh?" He chuckled. "Course he would. Then I'll stay here," he walked over to her bed, "and ye let me know when someone keels, eh?"

She stared at him in disbelief.

He sat on her bed beside her and began to raise his legs to lay down. Then he paused, looked her and stared. "Get off my bed, would ye? Ye got your sleep, now I get mine."

"..." It wouldn't do to argue with him. _I have to find that book._ She got up and watched Dr. Francis settle on his back, cross his ankles, and fold his hands across his chest. He unfolded them to rub his nose, sniffed, and refolded his hands. After a moment, he quickly turned his head to glare at Freya.

"Watchin' me snore won't help ye! Stop them crazies out there, eh?"

"..." She turned and left the room, glancing at him again before closing the door. He had a smile on his face as he wiggled his head into her pillow.


	5. Chapter 4

Breakfast hadn't arrived yet, but some risers with the dawn were mulling about. She needed to find Dr. Bani's book, and fast.

Who was this Dr. Mokts. She knew she couldn't trust his shifty eyes. But here was a scholar she had never seen before, certainly never heard of. She scanned the open vestibule, searching for someone who would likely respond to her.

Drake. Of course.

She hurried down the steps, wondering why the presence of these scholars made her conform to everyone else's mode of transportation. It had been a long time since she'd gone out into the open air, and running free under the sky had breathed something curious inside. Something like freedom despite the depressing circumstances that she had unintentionally been introduced to.

"Can you help me?" She gently nudged the drunk.

"Eh, hm?" He opened his eyes and squinted up at her. "You been standing here all this time?"

"No, it is morning now," she sat down across from him and folded her legs, subconscious of the scholars who would look their way. "I met with Dr. Francis and he has told me things that are deeply disturbing."

"They're all like that," Drake replied, propping himself up and blinking his eyes. "Try not to think too hard or you might end up like them."

"I have a problem, Drake. Last night, I was visited by a man I've never seen or heard of, and when I awoke this morning, the book Dr. Bani gave to me last night was missing. And what's worse, someone had placed a sleeping spell on me while I slept to take that book from me."

"Sleeping spell, hm? Interesting..." he scratched his nose and stared glassily into the distance.

"You know a lot, I've come to notice, and would you have ever heard of a Dr. Mokts?"

"Hm," he frowned and looked around him, peering at the meandering scholars and acolytes.

She hoped beyond hope he would have. An imposter would mean trouble for this secluded library.

"Recently, I believe. Nervous kind of fellow? Doesn't finish his sentences?"

Freya nodded. "That sounds correct."

"I think he's new, but don't take my word for it. Came here months ago, I think. Don't like him."

She nodded again. "I can understand that."

Drake leaned forward and said in a low voice, "You think he's a thief? And a spellcaster?"

"I'm really not sure, but he was the only one who came into my quarters and saw the book."

"I thought spellcasters were ah, uh, not accepted round here these parts."

She sighed. "You're right, but they still exist. Would you know where he resides at this time?"

"Eh," he turned around to look at the doors behind the columns that held the balcony above. "It's in the southern quadrant, but you should look in the reading rooms first. But," he turned back around to Freya. "What are you going to say to him? You know how accusations go around here."

"...I need to follow him."

"If there's a lost book in this cave here, you best give yourself a few years to find it."

She closed her eyes and shook her head. _He's right. But I have to try._ She felt her racing heartbeat and willed it to slow down. She pictured the book in her mind's eye, focused on it, recalled its feel and the fleeting vision of the words inside. _No. Try as I might, I cannot trace an object. What would I say to Dr. Mokts, should he confront me? I must be prepared._

She opened her eyes and stood up. Drake was already nodding off. She make a short bow and thanked him, then set off to scour each reading room and cove.

She found him with another unknown scholar in an aisle of the upper tier library where she had first met Dr. Francis the night before. The book wasn't anywhere in sight, but their hushed conversation piqued her interest. Luckily, their backs were to her so Dr. Mokts hadn't spotted her from the corners of his shifty eyes. She walked silently down the adjacent aisle.

"...found out about him. He won't last much longer."

The stranger replied in a quieter voice she found hard to hear, and she took another step closer and paused. "...tolerate the lies? How much will ... before ... the spell?"

For the first time, she found the stone architecture very unaccommodating.

"How should I know? But who will go? Lizer?"

A sound of contempt. "... can't even walk a straight ... a better choice, but it's ... him. I pray he ... I can't..."

"It doesn't matter, as long as it's done quickly. Have you read it yet?"

"I wouldn't ...heard what happened ..."

"You're too weak. Very well. I will summon our leader. Go now before someone sees you."

She tightened her lip. They would pass by her in a moment. She looked up and jumped atop the shelf. A moment later, their figures passed by her from both ends of the aisle. Her eyes followed the stranger. _Never seen him before, either._ She watched them both leave at separate exits. _I'll let this stranger pass for now. It's Dr. Mokts that's the suspicious one_. The book was still here, and she could fathom that the stranger wished not to read the book because of what happened to its author. _So why is it so coveted?_

Making sure no one else was in the room to witness her abilities, she leaped to the exit Dr. Mokts went through and peered outside. There he was, scuttling around the balcony to the stairs going down.

But he never reappeared at the third level. She waited a moment more and then went to the stairwell. It was empty.

Her first instincts went to the elusive nature of caves. She began going down the stairs, pushing on the stone wall, but found nothing as she reached the bottom. _I must have missed a trigger somewhere. And now I've lost the other guy,_ she frowned. _I'm getting rusty. Dare I wake up Dr. Francis? He can't be right about the nature of this book. Something is terribly wrong, but I can't put my finger on it._

She sat down on the bottom step.

The breakfast bell clanged once but all remained as quiet as before. _This isn't me. I need someone who can make plans. I'm just a soldier, I take orders, not make them._ She put her head in her hands. _I'm going back to places I don't want to remember. Fratley, why have you abandoned me? I can't make it on my own! Without you, I'm lost in the puzzles of this world. ... No, I have to do this. I must solve this. Who can help me?_

She stood up and strode to the balcony, looking down to the mess hall near the entrance of the lowest level. Dr. Sloma, one of the head librarians here who didn't do much work at all, leisurely made his way through the double doors. _His arthritis must be bothering him. Now he's been here for a very long time. Perhaps he would notice oddities such as this one._

"Who?" Dr. Sloma slid his eggs through the gravy and shook the pepper dispenser vigorously.

"Dr., Mokts," she said slowly. _Am I talking too fast?_

The head librarian, one of a few, spooned the scrambled gravy eggs into his mouth and looked up at her, chewing.

"I heard he's only arrived here recently."

"Oh," he swallowed and clicked his tongue. "I don't keep track of them new ones' names. I just keep my eye on them, I don't trust them. You say he's not acting right?"

"Well I didn't exactly say that, I just wanted to know more about him. Who he associates with."

"His associates are new, I never seen him talking with the real scholars here. Another reason why I keep my eye on them."

"But who are these new scholars?"

"Ah." He spooned another mouthful of eggs, chewed for a while, then swallowed and clicked his tongue again. "Folks come here nowadays and think they're smarter than the rest of us. I suppose we were the same when we first arrived, so we don't bother with them. Let them find out on their own. In fifty years time, they'll be what we are now. Then there's you, Miss Freya. Now is this Dr. Mokts bothering you in any way?"

 _Should I tell him? ... No, the less everyone knows, the better._ "Not exactly, but his behavior is rather suspicious to me. His hushed conversations with his friends is... peculiar to me."

"Secrets, eh?" He chuckled. "Now you know we all carry secrets here. Just because he's new don't mean he can't have no secrets."

 _This was getting harder. And pointless._ "Do you know of a ...Lizer?"

Dr. Sloma's brows furrowed for a moment. "No, I can't say I have."

There weren't too many scholars in the mess hall yet _. Time to be a little more direct then._ "Do you know anything about the book Dr. Bani was writing, the one about Terra?"

His eyebrows lifted for a moment and he put his incoming spoon back down. "Just his opinions. What I've gathered from it," he leaned in closer and said in a hushed tone, "and I tell you I don't care to know about the evil folk who tried to infiltrate Gaia, but," he sat back, smiling to himself, "just a collections of heresay. I don't know where he got the information, but," he leaned back in again, "I'm afraid he's fallen victim to some ideology on it. He was, ah, one of those folk who thought the takeover phenomenon would have been a good thing for Gaia."

She leaned in. The idea shocked her. "But how could an alien race whose plan to replace our world with theirs possibly hold any support?"

He shook his head. "I'm not one of them, Miss Freya. It's like them crazy scientists who find the experiment more intriguing than the results. And," he rheumatic eyes hardened. "I wouldn't go around asking just anyone about this Terra. Thank Daguerreo it's burned up. We're split down the middle about the progressive nature of Terra. How one can hate this world and prefer a new one is beyond me. Defeats the whole purpose of being a scholar, in my mind. But the other half, they want something different. What's wrong with this here Gaia, that's what I'd like to know."

"I share your sentiments," Freya replied.

"So you think this Dr. Mokts is one of them?"

Freya looked around the others in the cafeteria. They were familiar faces, and she turned back to Dr. Sloma. "I believe it's a possibility. I believe that Dr. Bani has completed his manuscript, and they now have possession of it. I'm afraid there's some sort of... conspiracy about it."

"Conspiracy indeed!" He chomped down on the last of his eggs. "What's one man's words against the millions more? Miss Freya, you are aware that many of these books here would be considered conspiracies."

"Then why would Dr. Bani kill himself?"

He chewed for a while, gazing off into space, then swallowed and shrugged. "Who can say what oppressions he had in his mind? I, for one, would not care to know." He began placing his utensils and napkin on his plate.

 _This conversation isn't going anywhere._ "Dr. Sloma, I appreciate your help."

He nodded to her and made motions to stand up. Freya stood up, nodded in return, and slowly walked back outside to the vestibule. The library was tranquil like it was every morning. She decided to repair the railing below. In keeping herself in the main thoroughfare, she could keep an eye on the coming and goings of its inhabitants.


	6. Chapter 5

It was near high noon when she spotted the nameless younger scholar walking as fast as possible without attracting unnecessary attention, a package about the size of a tome tucked under his arm. He was alone, and as soon as he disappeared into the dormitory hallway, she leapt across the open water to the doorway and peered inside. There, just around the bend, a door closed quickly. In a flash, her ears were against the closed door, but she couldn't hear a sound.

A click.

Another minute went by in silence. Ignoring the flutter in her heart, her hand slid around the cold knob and turned it. There were no locks on the doors here. It was dim inside, and as she suspected, the room was empty.

The room was sparse, hardly used but occupied nonetheless. But where could he have disappeared to? Her eyes swept the room. She frowned. Scholars spent little time contemplating ways of concealing their tracks, unless it concerned concealing their sources. Or hiding a book. There, beside the bed was a small loop of metal. The trapdoor was clearly outlined in the wall despite the poor lighting.

She crouched beside it, and hearing nothing from the other side, she pulled on the ring. The door didn't budge. She shook her head, hooked her finger inside and turned the ring, and the door came loose. A draft of cool earthy air wafted into her face, and she could see a small light coming from around a turn in the tunnel.

 _It won't do to wait for them to come back. They have the book. I've heard of Daguerreo's catacombs, but this will be a first._ She went on her hands and knees and crawled through the rocky dirt tunnel.

After a few turns, she found the light source: a small torch placed in the floor of the tunnel, marking a split in the path. The left was dark but the right was dimly lit from another light. Following simple logic, she took the right path.

The passageway continued for a few more turns and she found herself approaching the floor of a room. Though she heard nothing, she paused and observed the silence. Certain that she was still alone, Freya crept to the tunnel's exit and looked around the room. It was small and empty, and a low doorway led into a hall.

Feeling a sense of urgency, she stood up in the room. Shaking her head and ignoring the itch in her hand for her trident, she went to the hallway. It too was short, with one door on each side at the end. They were both closed.

The air smelled cleaner. Was there an outdoor exit somewhere?

And before she could react, the door on the right burst open and the unnamed scholar scrambled into the hallway. Freya froze.

He fell onto his face when he saw her.

"Who are you?" She asked, remaining in the doorway.

He remained on the floor and slowly raised his head to look at her.

"Question, who are you?"

She shook her head. "I am Freya. What is this place?"

His eyes glittered under his forelock. "You're too late."

"What do you mean?"

His chest began to shudder in a quiet chuckle. "You cannot stop fate, Freya. You, who tried to stop it once before. This time, you will fail."

"Terra?" She took a step toward him. "What are you saying?"

"Our mother planet. She will rise again, and all you ignorant fools are powerless to stop it!"

She scowled. "Where is Dr. Bani's book?"

"Far away from here! Ha ha ha! You are too late!"

"And what power does that book have? What does that book have to do with fate?"

"Oh! But it has everything to do with fate." He lifted himself up and sat on his haunches. "This book will give us the knowledge to be one with our creators and grant us the power of immortality. We will reach our true height and be gifted with the power of gods."

"Then why did you refuse to read it?"

He gave her an angry glare. "Only the holiest of us may digest its treasures. I am only a mere apprentice."

She curled her hands into fists. "Why would Dr. Bani throw himself from the cliff then."

He bowed his head for a moment, then looked back up at her with a hard stare. "He has transcended us, and even now he basks in the power of Terra, reborn wiser than anyone could ever dream of. He will sit at the right hand of our god as the father of Gaia."

 _Father of Gaia? What nonsense is this, a new religion?_ She took a step toward him.

"Stop!" The man put his hand up. "Your kind is not welcome."

"Tell me where the book is."

"As I said, you are too late."

"Where is it?" A surge of anger coursed through her. She cringed at the unwelcome resurrection of an emotion she hadn't felt in years.

"Ah ah ah," he wagged his finger at her.

She clenched her teeth. She would not let him get the better of her.

"You will let me through."

"Or else what? You'll tell the head librarian?" He laughed. "My work here is done. You cannot harm me. Fear those who can and will harm you."

"I fear no one."

He laughed again. "Such proud words! You, helpless rat, are doomed!"

She growled. "Such foul words for a fool," she breathed. "I will find that book and stop this madness!"

"You will stop nothing...!" He suddenly threw his hand forward.

Freya tensed but was hardly prepared for the ice crystals that materialized around her. They sparkled then exploded in a crash, leaving her bones shivering from the inside out. She snarled, ignoring the chills that shook her spine, and lunged toward him. He scrambled up to his feet and ran to the end of the hallway, spinning around to face her. She landed where he was sitting a moment before and she paused in a crouch, glaring at him.

"You cannot stop fate!" He shouted at her. "Why would you fight a higher calling to existence!"

"You are fooled!"

"You are the only fool here," he said in a sudden low voice.

He raised his hand again and she leapt backwards, hoping to avoid another elemental attack. The image of her trident flashed through her mind again. But instead of seeing an offense where she once crouched, she saw a ball of flame consume the man himself.

"No!" She cringed and her stomach wrenched itself as she heard the man cry out. He jumped and hopped and then ran to the door he had come out of. She ran after him, a draft of fresh air hitting her with a choking dark smoke. The room was a ledge built into the mountainside, and she watched in horror as he jumped over the balcony and disappeared. A gust of wind blew the trail of smoke away.

She gripped the frame of the door and squeezed her eyes shut again.

Another death.

 _Have I caused this? I should have never followed him._ She gagged, falling to her knees with her head bowed. _Gods, have mercy on me, I never meant for this to happen. Gods, what have I done!_

She heaved and forced herself to slow her breathing. She took a deep breath and looked up to the sky, the brim of her hat sheltering her eyes from the sun above. And there, despite the glimmering rays that made her eyes squint, she spied a small dark object in the distant sky. She held her breath. Yes, it was moving away from here.

An airship.

 _May the gods have mercy on his soul,_ she prayed and stood up.


	7. Chapter 6

_Thank you all for your kind words and support! Been going through some rough times, but I promise you I won't abandon this project._

The first thing she did was investigate the room opposite the balcony's entrance, but it was merely a closet. Next, she went back into the tunnel with the small lamp she took from the hallway where she witnessed the terrible act and went down the left-hand path. It led to a dead-end of broken rock. Whoever crafted the tunnel apparently abandoned the project at that point.

She went back into the secret entrance and began her search for Dr. Mokts, but he was nowhere to be found.

After all was inconclusive, she stood at the balcony of the third tier and looked over the library. All was serene, the scholars and acolytes busy in their personal projects, oblivious to anyone and everyone else. Drake was sprawled on the stone beside the altar. From here, she could see the two oracles from Cleyra, Sofie and Kildea, conversing in the reading room. The everyday harmony of Daguerreo.

It was time.

She went up to her room where Dr. Francis snored loudly. As quietly as she could, she retrieved her trident and armor and went down to the weaponsmith. Some looked at her for a curious moment, but all nonchalantly shrugged and ignored her. Which was perfectly fine. Crabsy looked over her equipment, shined some rusty spots, made sure the links and hooks were strong, and created a cacophony of clanging metal for a good twenty minutes. None complained. After he deemed her wares as strong and durable as the day they arrived at the library, she returned them to her room and went back down to Missy's shop. Missy was away but she had left her wares available upon the integrity of the rare visitors that came down to Daguerreo.

Freya gathered a few essentials and dropped some extra coin into the jug under the counter, just in case someone did happen to cheat poor Missy. With this she returned to her room and placed them in a small sack that would hang at her waist inside her coat.

Despite the clinking and rattling, Dr. Francis slept at full volume.

The last stop would be the Synthesizer. And perhaps Drake.

She closed the door. Dinner hour would be soon. She wasn't sure what time Dr. Francis would awaken, but she would be ready should it be by sunset. She made a slow roundabout trip from the fourth level, down through the third level, then down to the second, but Dr. Mokts was still nowhere to be found.

Could it be that he was on that airship?

As she passed by Missy's shop toward the Synthesizer (he was probably napping), she spied the entrance to Daguerreo open and a misshapen silhouette entering the library. The figure kicked closed the entrance door and strode proudly to the ramps. She stopped when she saw him come out from the shadowy hearth and wasn't sure what to make of his appearance.

He stepped up onto the first dais, stopped and stared back at Freya, then raised one of his four arms and pointed at her. Then he pointed to the floor he stood on.

 _I may as well get used to jumps again,_ she sighed and lightly launched herself from the balcony's edge. He didn't move a muscle as she landed exactly where he pointed at on the floor. His shock of red hair flopped as he looked her up and down from behind his helmet, twin oversized daggers still poking out from his boots. Unlike before though, now he had a second large sword sheathed at his side.

"Gilgamesh," Freya exclaimed, bowing slightly, "your travels have treated you well, I hope?"

"Indeed, clever ratta," he bowed in reply.

"What brings you back to this quiet place again, may I ask?"

"Eh," he folded both pairs of arms. "It's a strange world out there. Doesn't feel right. Cards are at an all-time low. I need some entertainment."

"Here?" Freya put her hand over her mouth and smiled.

"Eggs, fish and gravy," he bowed low. "I'm on the lamb, need I say more?"

"You have my respect, as always," Freya replied. "I'm afraid things aren't well here, either."

"You don't say? Drake stirring trouble again, is he?"

"Not exactly. There have been two unnatural deaths here and I believe a certain book is behind it."

His lower pair of arms went to his hips. "Here too then?" He shook his head. "That's why I came here. I'll sit tight till it blows over. I'm not getting involved this time."

"You weren't involved the last time..?" Freya frowned.

"That was dirty business. And Enkido never did get me that legendary sword. What a whole lot of good that did me. Now look," he raised his arms in the air. "I'm a failure."

"You'll be fine," she smiled.

"I'm going to find a new treasure. See this?" He pulled out his new sword, its golden blade shimmering with the water reflections from below. He tapped the floor with it. "Acknowledgements to Dagi, alright?"

"There is much to be learned from this place," she agreed.

He sheathed the golden sword. "I looked for Amarant, but I haven't heard high or low about him. Nor Lani. You hear from him?"

"Not once since I saw him last in Alexandria."

"If you run into him, you tell me. I have some words for that crook."

She nodded, smiling to herself. _What tricks has he been up to now, I wonder?_

"And," he crossed both pairs of arms again. "I say again something's not right. Spooky out there."

"I will be going out there soon," she said quietly.

He tilted his head. "Don't make trouble like the last time. But if you want some advice, clever ratta, watch the fauna. They talk much more than folks like you and I. That's how I know what I know."

"I will take your advice, thank you."

Just after he bowed, the dinner bell jangled. "Impeccable!" He declared. "Will you be joining me?"

She shook her head. "I have more pressing matters at the moment, but I appreciate your offer. I would like to hear of your travels."

"You shall, fare well and may you succeed." He took her hand and placed a quick peck on it, then with his hands on his hips, he strode away toward the cafeteria.

She watched him go for a moment, then glanced back up at the fourth tier.

"What'd I tell ye?" He sniffed and gave her a triumphant grin.

"Dr. Francis, I don't see how a man's passing is so... trivial to you," her lips formed a thin grimace from the images that played in her mind.

"You're right in calling him a fool. But see, now that heresy's going to spread all over, ye watch my words!"

"I'm going to find it and stop it," she said flatly, tugging at the straps of her satchel.

"And where to, exactly?"

"I'm going to find my friends first. This is a wonderful place, but events like this will take more notice out there than they do in here."

"Absolutely right about that, Freya, since ye know damn well we don't care."

She looked hard at him as he sat atop her bed swinging his feet. "You seem to care."

"Yes, normally I couldn't care about other people's theories. But I know a spell when ah see one."

"A spell?" She patted the satchel and pulled her coat over it. "Do you think the book contains a spell?"

"His book can burn with its useless posturing. I say there's a spell over these fandangled idiots martyring themselves in the name of a tall tale! Tales of hope and treachery indeed. Those words have some kind of spell, and someone's behind it!"

"What makes you think so?"

He scowled at her. "Because I know so." He tapped his hoary head. "I'm smarter than ye. Ah been around a lot longer than ye, and I smell a spell. Brainwashing! Mind control! That's what it is!"

"...That sounds rather far-fetched."

"I ain't the only one who knows so, Freya. Where ye think you're going?"

"Lindblum." She picked up her trident.

"Ah!" He hopped off the bed. "Excellent choice! We shall leave at once!"

"There is a small problem," she started, watching the old man pick up his scattered belongings that had somehow appeared in her room.

"Eh? Eh? What'd ye say?" He gathered up some small books and stuffed them into his jacket pockets.

"You're coming with me?"

"No," he scooped up some writing utensils from the nightstand and stuffed those into his pocket too. "Ah said _you're_ coming with _me_."

"The travel will be tough, Dr. Francis, I don't know if..."

"Jes' because I'm wiser than ye don't make me weaker than ye! Follow me!"

And he marched past her, opened the door and began down the hall. She sighed and started after him. Many of his piers were well into their dinners so the library was empty. Clinking utensils and trickling water echoed throughout the chamber as she followed him across the fourth tier's balcony to the opposite side. _There's only study rooms on this end,_ she wondered as he banged open the door and marched into the room. Freya looked down at the atrium, Drake now curled up on the floor beside the altar. Goodbye's would have to wait for now.

He was already across the room and she hurried to catch up. He turned around as she approached him. "Now this here's a secret. I don't want no one botherin' me about it, ye hear?"

She nodded, confused, then watched him go to the last cubicle and push on the wall beside the desk. He pushed again, and nothing happened. He turned around and looked at Freya. "Now come here," he waved his hand. "I need your brute strength."

She nodded and went to him.

"At the count of three, ye push too, now one, two-" he heaved noisily and she hurriedly pushed on the wall as well. The rock face moved a few inches inwards, and she heard another scraping from the opposite end of the room. She turned around and there, another door-shaped section of the wall had indented.

"There it is!" Dr. Francis did a small jump and ran over to the new entrance and Freya hurried to catch up. She found herself in a crudely built hallway, but one that even she could stand straight up in, and heard a click as Dr. Francis pressed a button on the wall adjacent to the doorway. From nowhere, he snapped a match and lit a lamp before the secret door slid back in place.

"Don't want no intruders, eh?" Dr. Francis' eyes glittered behind the firelight, and not waiting for a response, he scurried down the hallway with Freya right behind him.

She spied daylight after a sharp right turn. _How many secret exits and crevices are there here? How have I not known of these?_ She slowed down as the hallway ended at a large cavern. It smelled of hay and earth. A winding twisted stairwell at the back of the cavern led upwards some fifteen feet where a large opening let in the waxing daylight. Smaller wooden frames and crates were scattered throughout, and she watched Dr. Francis scurry towards the back of the large open room.

"Kweh!"

Freya's heart jumped, the familiar call echoing throughout the cavern. It was a lovely melody to her ears, so lovely did she find those birds. And there, behind a short wall, a chocobo strutted out to meet Dr. Francis. It lowered its head and the small man hugged its beak. Not just any chocobo.

"Where did you find such a creature!" Freya breathed, taking a few tentative steps after him.

"Kweh!" The chocobo lifted its golden head and swiveled its head to eye the rose-colored figure.

"Miss Freya, I've had dear old Shoofie since the beginning of time! We've taken care of each other, and well bother, he never left me, so I made this," he waved his arms around, "for this old man here. He'd rather lay around and sleep than romp all day with all them other birds."

"Kweh!" The bird bobbed his head and lightly butted Dr. Francis.

"Now now," Dr. Francis scratched the bird's chest. "We got a long trip, I hope you're ready! Frey, go git' that saddle over there by the steps, it's good for the both of us."

She nodded and as she approached the bird with the saddle in hand, he fluttered his wings and squawked.

"Ah!" Dr. Francis scolded. "Ye want the bit or what!"

Shoofie shook his head and put his head down.

"Long trip, old man!" Dr. Francis shouted as he grabbed the saddle from Freya and threw it on the bird's sloped back.

"He's a marvelous bird," Freya began, "but do you think...?"

"Of course!" Dr. Francis hunched down to tie the straps. "I believe he's older'n me, he knows his way everywhere. Won't stop, either."

"But the both of us..." Shoofie kept looking at her, blinking.

"Ye callin' me fat?" Dr. Francis jerked back up and eyed her. "Now ye get to sit in the back. If ye fall off, ye fall off, nothin' to it. Now let's get out of this cursed place, eh?"

For an old man, he easily placed his foot in the stirrup and sat himself in the saddle.

"But where..." Freya looked at the one-passenger saddle.

"Come on now, before he flies off without ye!"

Shoofie certainly was getting anxious. "Here goes," Freya said to herself and she jumped and landed as gently as she could behind the doctor.

"Well hey," he turned his head. "Like a cat ye are, eh? Hmph!" He rubbed Shoofie's neck. "Let's go!"

"Kweh!" And suddenly the bird was flapping and kicking. At first he struggled to gain height and Freya held onto the saddle, praying that the old man had strapped it on correctly. After some vertical lifts and drops, the bird bypassed the stairs, landed atop the opening and pushed off.

She held her breath, awed as she always had been whenever she found herself in the skies. Once in the open air, Shoofie balanced himself and began coasting and gliding, catching the winds that rushed beside the mountain. The setting sun was just beginning to change color, the blue moon barely peeking from the southern horizon, almost invisible in the fading light.

She took in a deep breath, the air crisp and cold.


	8. Chapter 7

Long time coming. I have to say, forcing yourself to write does work its wonders because once the frustration subsides (and it can last for quite a while), the creativity just works its way out and everything flows very nicely. And writing conversations is a great way to get the word count up. Just kidding. Without further ado, here is Lindblum Part One. Part Two is currently mulling and hopefully will be accomplished sometime this week.

Lindblum had done a fine job of disguising Atomos' maelstrom. She could never erase the dismal chaos of that terrible night as the colossal eidolon rose from the earth and nearly swallowed the fortress whole. From of the golden rays of the dawn, Lindblum was a mountain of stone and white smoke. The city gleamed and amplified the morning light, glowing like a beacon of technology and inspiration. Cid had brilliantly converged his latest invention of steam into the city with its original mechanisms, and the fortress looked a thousandfold more spectacular than ever.

"Still engineer, eh?"

Freya agreed. The night had been cold and she had been more concerned keeping him warm than of her own comfort. He had stayed up all night as far as she knew, while she periodically dozed out of exhaustion. The ocean had seemed endless but at last, at the strike of dawn which echoed down the hillside, Shoofie had arrived magnificently on time.

"Ah am stiff, let us down already Shoo."

The chocobo chirped in reply.

Dr. Francis leaned back to her and whispered loudly: "Better he goes unnoticed. He don't like the attention anyway."

"And you have something to call him back?"

"I'm not worried about it! He always finds me!"

 _But does that mean he never finds him?_ Freya shook her head. "Where will you be going in Lindblum?"

"To the Court Library, where else? And where are ye going?"

"I was going to find an old friend."

"The one with the tail?"

"Yes."

"Well ye find me tonight at the library. And then?"

She looked at him rather confused. "I don't know what you mean?"

"Where are we sleepin'?"

Freya smiled and looked down, the soft grass coming up to greet them. "I will let you know, Dr. Francis."

Shoofie landed lightly and Dr. Francis fell off before the bird could trot to a stop. Freya jumped off after him as he tumbled away for a short distance.

"Are you alright?" She put her hand on him.

She leaned back when he hopped up to his feet.

"Dang nabbit bird brain, too slow for anybody..." he grumbled, dusting himself off.

She smiled again and stood, looking up to the city in the distance. They stood a few hundred yards from the main road, and though it would be an upward climb, it felt good to stand on firm ground. Small structures with whisking smokestacks littered the countryside and there were a few countryside folk in the distance preparing for their daily routine.

"Let's waste no time, shall we?" Dr. Francis held his arm out to her. She obliged and they began walking toward the city. When they got to the main road, he patted her arm. "Odd couple we are, eh?"

But her thoughts were elsewhere. It had been over two years since she had set eyes upon this place. Now that the surreal view from the sky was just a picture in time, seeing it as every other folk did from the ground made her uneasy and restless. And what would she find? Would people recognize her still, force her to hide herself under the cover of night? And is anyone the same anymore? Things and people had changed so much. She never bothered to keep up with technology, but now it felt as if she were antiquated and left behind. Useless.

Dr. Francis interrupted her thoughts. "There is no shame in keeping away from everyone, Miss Freya."

She turned to him. "I wish for no recognition."

"Then don't act so."

She frowned, then nodded. "You are right."

They continued uphill.

There he was. Blonde unkempt hair covering his face, mouth slightly open and the rest of him sprawled haphazardly on top of the bed's blankets. No, his habits hadn't changed at all.

She had skipped the alleys and barrooms after her and Dr. Francis had parted ways at the gate. The guards had treated her like any other citizen, and the doctor too had said he was here to visit old friends. Nothing had changed.

Not wanting to make a nuisance, she found a crate near his bed to sit upon and crossing her legs and folding her hands, she took in the hundreds of knick knacks and paraphernalia that littered the club's room. They had been keeping themselves busy.

The sun was nearly halfway across the sky when he finally stirred.

"I took the long way here, too," Freya said softly, anticipating the reaction.

Zidane lurched up onto his bed and promptly fell off the other side. His head popped up, then in an instant his face turned to surprise. "Freya!"

She smiled, squeezing her hands. "Expecting someone?"

"Ah, um," he chuckled and exhaled, settling himself down to the edge of the bed near her. "You know me Freya."

"I do," she nodded.

"And where have you been?" He looked up, his eyes bright and sparkling.

It felt good to see him so happy. "I've been at Daguerreo after Garnet's coronation."

"That place fits you," and he grinned. "Only you have the patience to sit in there for two years. Meet anyone interesting?"

"I have." She didn't want to spoil his curious joy.

"Freya," he leaned forward. "Something's bothering you."

But she couldn't hide it forever. "All these years apart, you can tell?"

He crossed his arms. "We've been friends for a very long time. You practically raised me to who I am now!"

She shook her head. "Don't flatter me so."

"But it's true. So what's wrong?"

She was quiet for a moment. "Have you noticed anything strange lately? Or heard any ill omens?"

"There's always ill omens. Someone's always trying to preach gloom and doom. Or are you saying something's reached Daguerreo?"

She nodded.

"Then that's probably more important than the drunk doomsayers here. What's going on?"

"There has been talk of Terra, that it's never really been destroyed and that it's returning to destroy Gaia."

He rolled his eyes. "Sounds more like that nonsense has taken its time getting all the way down there! Freya, those rumors have been going around since the day it was destroyed. You can't possibly believe all that talk. Terrans live here, right here in Lindblum, and everywhere else now too. They deal with their fair share of being ostracized, but everyone knows they're harmless and aren't responsible for the maniac that controlled them."

"A scholar I know has just completed a manuscript about Terra, and there is information in it that I've never heard of or seen before."

"He probably interviewed one of the Terrans."

"But this scholar," she paused, stiffening from the visions. "He completed the manuscript, gave it to me, then threw himself off a cliff."

His eyebrow arched and he frowned. "That's an odd sentiment."

She shook her head. "Before he committed this tragedy, he spoke of protectors returning to this planet, that our crystal is fading, and that we are doomed. I don't know who these protectors are, and I reminded him that there is no Mist anymore, but he told me that is irrelevant."

"'Returning?'" He tilted his head. "We eliminated Garland a long time ago. And the rest of the Terrans died when Kuja destroyed that planet. Could he be talking about eidolons?"

"What happened to the eidolons?"

"Garnet and Eiko haven't called for them since the final battle. No one's seen them since." He shrugged. "I can't imagine who these 'protectors' are."

Freya sighed. "Whoever they are, they are returning."

"But that's just one man's idea." He leaned forward. "He could have been crazy, you know."

"Perhaps. But the manuscript he had given to me was stolen from me that very night. Someone cast a sleep spell on me-"

"There are mages in Daguerreo?"

"This all disturbs me very much, Zidane. There shouldn't be, and magic isn't allowed inside the library. The book was stolen, and in my searches for it, a young acolyte mocked me for failing to retrieve the book and he too threw himself off a cliff."

Zidane threw his hands up.

"An airship had just departed Daguerreo as well when the second death occurred. Someone took that manuscript out of the library."

"Hm," he tapped his finger to his mouth. "Do you know who took it?"

"I am not entirely sure, but a Dr. Mokts was a peculiarly curious scholar about that book."

"That name could be a cover, too."

She leaned toward him. "The scholars there may have their peculiarities, but never do they display this sort of fanaticism. And were they infiltrators to obtain that book, why then would they die for it? There is something dangerous about what was written inside, something a sect of people don't want us to know."

"Mhm. I assume they expect Gaia to be dying again?"

She nodded. "And that they will transcend to a higher power."

He rolled his eyes. "Of course! They will sit at the right hand of Garland, or whoever they worship, and help direct the fate of the world!"

"These are the most dangerous kind."

"Right, right," he acquiesced with an exhale and looked down. "Well I'm afraid I don't know anything about all this. I haven't seen or heard of any crazy religions or suicides lately. At least not here." He put his hands up and looked at her. "As crazy as it is, there are people out there who wish Terra took over. I'm inclined to say that someone heard about your friend's book and wants to make it their gospel or something."

"But to die for it?"

"People are crazy, Freya, you ought to know that!"

She shook her head. "It just doesn't make any sense."

"You came alone?"

"No, I met an interesting scholar after the fact and we came here together."

"He's on your side?"

"He believes the book is enchanted. Someone placed a spell on it and is turning people into martyrs."

"Martyrs for Terra?"

"But Terra is dead! You said so yourself!"

Zidane chuckled and shrugged. "Just playing devil's advocate. If Terra were still alive, and on top of that, if it were trying to revive itself, why not make a spell that makes people voluntarily send their souls to their crystal?"

"I think it's more complicated than that."

"The Grand Fusion, or whatever they called it, that's the only way Terra can take over Gaia. Unless they decide to make an army of the miniscule amount of Terrans left here and destroy Gaia itself."

"But they don't want Gaia, they only want its husk. Our blue crystal isn't capable of Terra technology, that's why it has to turn red."

Zidane frowned and tilted his head. "You seem to know an awful lot about this Terran business."

"It's my duty."

"Hm. You're not going to ask me to save the world again, are you?"

He paused and Freya knew that she in fact did come here to ask him for help. But he resumed before she could put her words together.

"So what do you think you'll find here? You think they brought this book here?"

She swallowed the lump in her throat. "It's the nearest city, so I believe it's possible. I am assuming my friend, Dr. Francis, is doing his own investigation at the Court Library."

He rolled his eyes. "Nothing but stuffy uppity know-it-alls in there. Good luck." He stood up, stretched, and hopped down to a nearby table where he poured himself a cup of cold coffee.

Freya looked down at her hands and stopped her unconscious thumb-twiddling. _He sounds reticent to help me. Should I even ask?_

"Coffee?" Zidane motioned to her with his cup.

She shook her head, got up and joined him at the table. She never had a problem doing what needed to be done, but when it came to personal requests and conversations, she found herself fearful and apprehensive. _I shouldn't be so nervous. He's my friend, he means no harm!_ "What you said before..." She started, taking a breath and glancing at him before continuing. He sipped his coffee and stared up at her, as cool as can be. "You wouldn't help me stop this?"

He put his cup down and looked at her.

She could fathom his simple expression before he even opened his mouth. He was always an easy read.

"I can't, Freya. I'm sorry. It's not that I don't think you're chasing shadows, it's just that I have a lot going on right now. And if this does turn into something, I don't want the attention anymore. I'm so happy where I am right now Freya, you have to understand."

 _I understand more than you think. I don't want this job anymore than you, but... I can't shrug it off and pretend it never happened, either._ She nodded. "I think I do." _And I too don't want the attention. You of all people know I don't._

"I can tell you where you can hear the best gossip around here. I'll help you in any other way that I can Freya, you can always come to me."

"That's why I came here first," she said quietly.

"Freya," Zidane grabbed her arm. "Please don't take it personally. You just give me the word and I'll get Cid and Garnet on this case, too, if you think that will help. I'll find you places to stay. I'll tell you where the nearest Terran is so you can talk to them yourself. Please Freya, don't be upset."

She managed a small smile and looked at him. "Thank you. I am truly thankful for your help, but most of all your friendship. I will come to you if I'm in need of any of those things. I would wish for the gossip and perhaps even the Terran."

He smiled wide and nodded emphatically. He turned over half the room before he managed to find a pencil and something to write on, and after his quick scribbling, he handed the torn napkin to her and bowed.

"Kicking me out already?" Freya said in amusement, turning the napkin around until she was able to read his handwriting.

"Naw, you can stay as long as you want, but I am due for a stage cleanup and some I-don't-remember-what for Baku."

She shook her head. "Iso..?"

"Isoto. She's really sweet, and really smart. I think you two would get along."

"Thank you, my friend. I have much to do today, and it is getting late already."

"But it's only noon!" He grinned and they walked out of the hideout together. They embraced and went their separate ways.


	9. Chapter 8

Yes, I'm a little behind, but I hope it's worth the wait! Thanks for the read!

And as always, any reviews, criticisms, pointers, questions, anything, is most welcome.

She didn't want to but she had to do it. Hopefully recognition would be minimal, preferably nonexistent. Fourth Street Pub wasn't a common haunt of hers in the past, but she did know about it through the grapevine. What other choices did she have?

Thankfully no one gave her a second glance at either airstation. _Perhaps they have all forgotten,_ she hoped. The "gossip central" was a ways from the Market District and she traveled slowly enough to absorb the city's climate. All was the same regardless of the passing trends and modernized machinery. Children still bustled in noisy groups, the denizens still hustled their wares and ran to and fro. _It's the mind that makes everything change. Our actions stay the same, but thoughts are what makes the difference._

Nearing the pub, the area became grimier, but with the sun still in the afternoon sky, it didn't seem as bad as the last time she had come here. And there, there was that same drunken sailor. An interesting character trotted past. Freya tipped her hat a little lower and entered the bar.

It was smoky and the air smelled ripe with booze and sweat. It was like stepping into an alternate and filthy dimension, but she knew Zidane was right. Something could be found here.

She found a seat in the back at the end of the counter. If anyone wanted to part with information, they would do it in the shadows. She put up a finger when the bartender passed, the universal sign for a truce and his mercy for whatever was on tap. On the upside despite her mood, a drink would help her relax. Maybe.

As she nursed the watered-down beverage, she did her best not to make it obvious that she was eavesdropping the entire room. Griping about landlords, threats about neighbors, family and so-called friends, ruminations and sentimental tears, arguments over money. Where were the political naysayers? She dreaded having to stick around here any longer than she had to. Hopefully Dr. Francis was making more progress than she was. This was yet another blow and she hung her head lower. The drink was only a tease and Freya craved something stronger to numb the discouragement, but the bartender was schmoozing at the other end.

"Well if it isn't the lone dragoon."

She twitched her ears and peered at her new neighbor who sat down one stool away. She didn't recognize him and a small seed of anxiety formed inside. "Should I know you?"

"Pah," he turned his face away for a moment but looked right back at her again. "I've heard enough about you..."

"What I was matters no more."

"You flatter yourself. What's a dame like you doin' in a place like this?"

"Thinking."

He sneered. "With all this trash? Come now, you're spyin'."

"And what if I am?" Honesty was a good and bad thing.

"So what is it that you need to know?"

"I'm waiting for it."

He sneered again. "Are all you Burmecians always so vague?"

She nodded. Let him think so. Better to be vague than garrulous.

"Let me guess. Politics."

"Then I should be talking with the Regent."

"Pah," he waved his hand. "Don't play games."

"Are you telling me that you have much more to offer than the Regent?"

"He's got nothin' on me, dragoon. Try me."

She eyed him. He appeared to be an engineer so he wasn't exactly a drunk hoodlum. Unless his dress were a guise. A bit brash and vain, but otherwise a relatively normal patron for this area. "I'm looking for the Terrans."

He rolled his eyes. "Please, you'll never find them here."

She must have hit a nerve because he went on rolling his eyes.

"They think they're citizens of this planet now, walkin' around with their books and their highfalutin noses in the air, like they know better than everybody. Get'm out, out, off this planet already! Just the other day one of them freaks got married, married to some miserable brain-washed bimbo, and now they both walkin' around with their noses in the air, as if he's some feckin' prize or somethin'."

"When did they come here?"

"Here? They're everywhere now! They didn't take their time neither, as if they're still tryin' to take over our civilization or somethin'. Totin' some nonsense that they're more advanced than us and that they can help us 'move forward' or whatever feel-good mantra they spew. They're not from here and they don't belong here! Right Gaz?" He turned around to an individual sitting at a table behind her.

"Eh?" Gaz barely got his nose out of his mug.

"Pah," he waved his hand. "Dim bastard. If it were up to me," he scooted himself into the stool beside her. The smell of alcohol in the vicinity most certainly came from him. "I'd throw them all out back to that village up there and lock'm in. Let'm go extinct like they're supposed to."

She frowned.

"No no," he wagged his finger. "They've been nothin' but a plague from the get-go and you know it. What the hell was all your fightin' for? Fightin' them aliens, don't you sit there and say they should be free! Their planet might be dead now but that ain't stoppin' them from still tryin' to take over our world! Parasites, leeches! And that leader of theirs, walkin' around with our Regent as if she's to be respected, pah! She's the worst of them all, her nose is all the way in the stars the way she looks down at us - and him. No, she's just puttin' on a show because deep down she's got some evil scheme to take over this world. She ain't no peacebringer."

Freya opened her mouth but was cut off.

"That friend of yours, at least he minds his own business. He sits there entertainin' people as he should. I ain't talkin' bad about him, but he ain't tryin' to take over the world and he never did, so he's alright in my book. But them other Terrans, aw no, they're bad news. Bad news. Your friend don't walk around lookin' down at all of us like the rest of them do. There's somethin' fishy about them and you heard it first from me. I don't trust them and I never did, they ain't never gettin' over on me."

It would be pointless to object. "Are there many of them here?"

"Man, what hole did you crawl out of? There's about twenty, thirty of them here, and that don't include everywhere else. And that's twenty or thirty too many. I'm only one man, but believe me, I ain't the only one who feels this way about them. They've got to go one way or another. They're teachers, keepers, sailors, shi'it, they're infiltratin' this world. And they're damn good at it. Kwall!" He raised his fist and the bartender turned his head. He put up two fingers and turned back to Freya. "So whose side you on then?"

She shook her head. _Never state your opinions to an irate man._ "They could never take over this world, there aren't enough of them."

"Hey, I never underestimate my enemy. Who knows what they're capable of, maybe they're clonin' themselves as we speak, how do you know! They did it with them crazy mages. They're all clones themselves! That's some sickness there!"

The bartender came over with a glass for each of them.

The drink looked tantalizing, but she didn't want to spend her whole afternoon here. She took a courteous sip anyway, and like she thought, it was much stronger and satisfying than her truce drink. This guy was a regular without a doubt.

"Thank you," she hoped he would cool down.

"They need to go, and you know it." He took a large gulp of his liquor. "I'm tellin' you: they're in the schools and libraries and businesses already. Next, they'll be in the government, and you watch, things'll change, change for the worse. Things are already changin'. They're already settin' people against each other."

"How so?" Now this was interesting.

He clenched his fists. "They're brainwashin' people into thinkin' they're good for society! And then there's the wiser folk, like me, who know better and that they've got their own agenda and they aren't doin' anything good for us. And so now there's people who think they're good, and people who know better, and of course if they were any good for us, then why are we fightin' over it? If they're good, we wouldn't be fightin'!"

"There's always at least two opinions about anything."

"There ain't no two opinions about your friend with the tail there! Everybody knows he's alright. But not everybody feels the same way about the rest of them parasites. They come here on charity 'cause they ain't got a nickel to rub, and some fool takes them in and they get their handouts and start tellin' us what to do! And so what do the idiots whose eyes are all glazed over in admiration for somethin' new do? They worship them! Them, the same people who were ready to steal our souls so they could devour our world and suck it dry like they did with their own world. Parasites! And they call this progress! Pah!" He took another large drought.

For a quick moment, she saw his point and shuddered. People were sheep, that was true. "Do you know any Terrans around here?"

He stared at her. "I ain't associatin' with those parasites. They ain't even people, they're clones. You meet one, you met'm all. I met one once. Like a feckin' piece of wood, and pretentious to boot. She was just an employee of this clothin' shop and she, parasite that she is, was orderin' around the other employees. And they just fawned over her. But there was nothin' in her eyes, nothin'. No appreciation, no thankfulness, just cold. Empty. And then what do I hear months later that this parasite took over the place. I knew that owner. He let her steamroll'm outta there, just let her smash him and take over his business. Now he's had to move to the Factory District 'cause he didn't get no money out of the deal - and where'd she get this money to take the store from him I wonder? - and to top it off, she's opened up two other shops. Cold. Heartless feckin' parasite. They're nothin' like us and they don't belong here."

She felt a knot growing inside and in anxiety, she drained the rest of her drink. "I believe I've learned more than I anticipated."

He raised his drink to her, then realizing her glass was empty, he drained his as well.

"I'm tellin' you dragoon, watch them parasites. Take my warnin', it's for your good. Don't trust them."

She nodded and thanked him. "I must take my leave..."

"Call me Sieem. You watch your back, dragoon."

"I shall. Fare well."

She greeted the sunshine and warm breeze with a deep inhale. Deciding without a second thought that is was time to see how Dr. Francis was doing, she began retracing her steps back to the Market District. _The religious suicides aren't here yet, thankfully. But it seems there is more strife in the world over the Terrans than I realized. I didn't know it was this bad. I've forgotten how narrow-minded people can be. Living in Daguerreo has been beneficial, but yet I really_ have _been living in a hole. This is not good. Zidane said there's always naysayers. Is he partial to them because they're his relatives? Or is this Sieem exaggerating, as most opinionated people tend to think?_

Wavering in her thoughts, she made it back to the air cab station.

She didn't see any Terrans along the way.


	10. Chapter 9

CWolf: Compliments are truly appreciated! Thank you for keeping up with the story.

* * *

The Court Library was a magnificent white structure with a dramatic long flight of stairs that covered the width of the building. Aspiring scholars, impatient children, aloof professors, even a few moogles, littered the bleached stone. But no Terrans were in sight.

An hour of perusing the premises passed before she wound up back at the entrance and asked the greeter if there was a Dr. Francis that had signed in to the library.

"Yes," he flipped back a number of pages before his placed his finger on the name. "I recall he went upstairs to speak with the board. That was hours ago...?" He looked up at her through his thick lenses.

"You don't recall him leaving?"

"Perhaps. I was gone for lunch. We are closing within the hour, you know."

"I am aware." She thanked him and went back upstairs. She hadn't pressed beyond the public access rooms up here, but hoping that the doctor hadn't left the premises, she opened a door marked "private" and proceeded down the hallway. Empty reading and sitting rooms lay behind each open door. Towards the end of the hall, she began to hear voices that sounded as if they were arguing. _Could it be?_

She opened the last door and peered inside, and there around a long table sat thirteen mostly white-haired men in a heated debate. And Dr. Francis sat at the head of the table with his arms folded and a mute smile upon his face. He glanced at her and his smile widened. The others ignored her, perhaps they didn't even notice her amid their apparent frustration. Something about the sorcerers of Gizamaluke and the witches of the Ice Cavern.

Freya stole over to crouch beside Dr. Francis.

"Did you find out anything?"

"Say what? Heh?"

She frowned. "Why are you in the middle of-"

He interrupted her as he leaned forward toward a man at the far end of the table and shook his fist. "Sir Peya had absolutely _no_ idea, I say _no_ idea, that Madam Tershah even existed! Haven't ye read the Annals of Ancient Burme?"

The man he addressed glared angrily back at him. "Of course I have! Madam Tershah isn't mentioned in those annals because they refused to even acknowledge her existence! But she certainly-"

"Easy for ye to say!" Dr. Francis roared back. "Tell me where Brume ever mentions her name!"

"That's why these annals must be interpreted again! The translations are weak at best, we have so much more knowledge of the old language today. There's proof of her rebuttals in-"

"Bah!" Dr. Francis waved his hand and the man continued his argument with the person beside him.

Freya stared at Dr. Francis in exasperation. "You're arguing over something that happened six hundred years ago? Can I speak to you in private?"

He shook his head. "Can't ye see I'm in the middle of an argument?"

She blinked slowly. "Did you find out anything?"

"About what?"

Her throat tightened. "About the book or about Dr. Bani?"

"Oh, that lunatic." He rubbed his hand over his face. "No."

"Did you even ask?"

He stared at her and shook his head.

She stared back at him.

She and everyone at the table jumped when he slammed both his hands on the table.

"Attention!"

All twelve men stared back at him.

"This is all good and fun, my dear gentlemen, but I have a pressing question today that has completely skipped my mind."

They all nodded and voiced their understanding and sympathy. Freya inwardly smiled and shook her head.

"I've just had two members of my library throw themselves off a cliff in the name of Terra. Now what could this possibly be about?"

"Are you blaming us about that?" "Why would they do that?" And a variety of other murmurs rose up, but no one said anything in firm response.

Dr. Francis waited a minute before continuing. "Has anyone heard of a recently completed tome called 'An Assessment of Terra?'"

Shrugs and more murmurs.

Freya felt her small hopes dashing against the bleached stones.

An old man managed to squeak out above the rest: "What about Terra?"

"A book about Terra, written by a Dr. Bani," Freya asserted. The twelve men suddenly looked up at her as if she had just materialized out of thin air. Those nearest her leaned back in surprise. She ignored them. "Has anyone here heard of Dr. Bani?"

"He's ah, uh, he's something of a recluse," the man near her offered.

"He wrote this book and then killed himself, in the name of Terra and a higher calling. And then someone stole the book about Terra he had just completed and has disappeared with it. Has anyone any knowledge whatsoever of this book or anything involving the return of Terra?"

"Terra's returning?" "I thought Terra was dead." "It's those damn Terrans." "What do the Terrans have to do with this?" "Dr. Bani's always been insane." The murmurings were louder and more varied now.

One man finally spoke up. "Nothing but rumors, dragon knight." He hit the table to silence the ensuing murmurs. "You must be Freya?"

"I am," she bowed her head and looked back at him. "I am on a mission to stop what appears to be a new religion calling for the return of Terra, and I wish to ensure that Terra is in fact dead."

"Ye are?" Dr. Francis turned up to her in surprise.

She frowned at him.

"Making sure that Terra is dead?"

"I see that as an inevitability."

"Ah," Dr. Francis nodded and turned back to face the twelve gentlemen.

"This is respectable," the other man continued. "But I, and if I may speak for the rest of us here, have no knowledge of this 'Assessment of Terra' manuscript. We know of Dr. Bani, but he has left us a very long time ago. Our opinions may vary but most of us can agree that he was not altogether together in the head. We are sorry for his passing. It seems he has succumbed to his budding madness."

"I knew Dr. Bani, and while he was a peculiar man, he gave no sense of madness," someone countered.

"Except when he jumped off a cliff?" The man raised an eyebrow.

"You may mock me, sir, but I cannot ignore two suicides within the span of a day."

"Indeed," Dr. Francis interjected. "I left that place in a hurry because I say there is madness in that book. And I don't want to be there when some fanatic comes looking for that book."

"Who would look for that book? We've never even heard of it."

"Well," Dr. Francis turned to Freya. "I dare say that that book is not here."

 _I can gather that myself,_ she glowered in silence. _At least not to their knowledge. This must be some cult then that's after that book._ "There hasn't been any talk of the return of Terra then?"

"There's always talk about that! If you would so kindly go and make sure it's dead, that would silence all the pro-Terra zealots," the man nodded. He looked sincere and hopeful that she would double-check for them.

"Any rumors that could possibly point to a religion, or a cult?"

Murmurs, but she didn't hear anything but the usual wishy-washy inquisitive wondering.

Dr. Francis leaned toward her and whispered, "I'd take that as a no."

She nodded and turned back to the table. "And what of the anti-Terrans?"

"There's always rivalries," another piped up. "We're divided as it is, so this is nothing new. In fact, we discussed the pros and cons of their existence among us last week. And we concluded that there are none. They may as well not exist."

She was dumbfounded, but then a moment later realized that that wasn't a very surprising conclusion for these men.

And they immediately began discussing highlights and lowlights of that discussion. She silently groaned and turned to Dr. Francis.

"Would you like to come and meet a Terran with me?"

"Eh?" His eyes left the conversation and looked at hers.

"The library will be closing soon anyway, and we still have to find a place for the night."

"Ye haven't found a place yet?"

"I will share my acquisitions with you later, but will you stay here or come with me?"

"Eh," he cast one more glance at the group in front of him. Suddenly he stood up and raised his hands. "I must take leave of ye all for today. Until we meet again," he bowed and everyone chimed their good-byes and farewells.

She sighed as they continued their dramatics.

Dr. Francis scoffed at Zidane's offers but was quite curious about the anti-Terran sentiment of Sieem. Freya still hadn't seen any Terrans in the city and she began to question the credibility of Sieem. Of course, he was just one disgruntled denizen out of hundreds, maybe thousands. But it still didn't change the fact that he had managed to plant some seeds of confusion in her mind.

Isoto lived in the Southern District, according to Zidane's directions. It was an upscale neighborhood, and Sieem's words continued to haunt her. As much as she wanted to take her friend's side, she couldn't deny the words from the streets. She had made it this far with the latter, but she also couldn't have made it here today without the former. So she paid attention as best she could to Dr. Francis' ramblings of how his group of professors were still arguing over the same topics, how nothing had been accomplished since he had been here last over twenty years ago, and the utterly dismal state of scholarly affairs the world was in, and the ranting continued.

It was a welcome distraction, for once.

She checked the address again and they were quite close to her home. He wrote that it was the cobblestone house with the red flowers. _That's strangely reminiscent of Terra's red crystal. Or is that purely coincidental?_ She shook her head to try and eliminate the doubts that kept surfacing in her mind.

And there was the house. It was very quaint, similar to its surrounding two and a half story homes in the neighborhood, with a short wooden fence that enclosed its premises. A porch wrapped around the home and red flowers lined its foundation. She stopped in front of the home as Dr. Francis stumbled into her rear.

"Well isn't this a fine house?"

"Yes, it is."

"Ah, queen of the obvious are we?"

She waved his comment aside, opened the little gate and they made their way to the entrance and knocked on the door.

After a short while, a young lady cracked open the door. She wasn't a Terran.

"Can I help you?"

"Yes, is this the residence of Isoto?"

"It is, who is calling?"

"I am Freya, and this is Dr. Francis. We were hoping to find her here-"

"And what business do you have with her?"

"Ah, excuse me miss," Dr. Francis butted in. "We just want to speak with her, an old professor and his assistant. I should like to talk to her of some things which don't concern ye."

The lady looked taken aback by Dr. Francis' unabashed demand but nodded and opened the door. "She should be home shortly then, please come this way."

She led them into a sitting room with a few comfortable armchairs and a wood stove and offered a liquid refreshment for them. Dr. Francis immediately complied, along with a demand for a generous helping of h'ordeurves. Her eyes widened again, but she acquiesced and disappeared.

Freya sighed and turned to him. Before she could exhale a statement on his behavior, he interrupted.

"Don't get in the way of an old man and his vittles, young lady."

"We are guests, Dr. Francis. I wish not to tread on anyone's toes."

"And that's why ye'r miserable." He settled into the armchair and looked confidently around the room.

She shrugged and joined him in admiring the affluent interior decor. The lady hadn't returned yet when Freya heard the front door open.

"Mara!" A voice called out from the front door.

The Terran voice was unmistakable.


	11. Chapter 10

She heard the servant girl, Mara, run quickly to the voice, who was just far enough away that Freya couldn't decipher what words were exchanged. Whatever they were, she heard one pair of footfalls retreat to where they came from, and then silence.

She knew this silence. It was the silent tread of a Terran, so she didn't jump like Dr. Francis when she saw a young blonde-haired woman in a fashionable light pink dress appear at the double doors. Dr. Francis immediately tumbled out of his seat and took her hand and shook it. Freya felt quite embarrassed at his show and remained sitting straight-backed in her armchair.

The lady, Isoto, respectfully shook his hand and after introducing each other, she nodded to Freya as Dr. Francis returned to his armchair.

"You must be Freya," Isoto exclaimed in her soft voice as she approached her.

"I am," she bowed her head in respect and Isoto took the armchair beside her.

Mara arrived just at that moment with a tray of three teacups and a covered dish. These she set on the marbletop table between the armchairs and Dr. Francis was hovering over this within seconds. Mara glanced sideways at him but proceeded to serve the tea and opened the dish to reveal (delicate) tea cookies. Dr. Francis huffed and noisily sipped from his teacup.

"I told ye to get something I can digest."

Mara said nothing but looked desperately at Isoto.

Isoto nodded, then smiled. "Please make Dr. Francis comfortable."

"Lazy! She didn't tell ye I asked for something the first time did she!" Dr. Francis huffed as he grabbed some cookies and settled down in his seat. Mara dashed quickly out of the room.

"I sincerely apologize," Isoto bowed her head.

He mumbled something as stuffed the cookies into his mouth and crumbs scattered across his lap.

Freya sighed as subtly as she could, and Isoto was gracious enough to change the subject.

"Mara tells me Dr. Francis and his assistant wished to discuss something with me? Are you, Freya, in fact his assistant, or is this what convinced Mara to let you inside?"

It wasn't exactly (rude) impolite and (demanding), but it wasn't exactly a kind statement either. Awkward, really, and Freya wasn't sure if that had to do with the inherent Terran directness of conversation or if they were in fact still soulless, as Sieem claimed. _What exactly did happen to their souls, I wonder?_ "We've come from Daguerreo to find answers that could not be found there."

"You are, indeed, the Freya who traveled with our brother, Zidane?"

She looked at the Terran, whose eyes were wide, with what she wasn't sure. Curiosity? Innocence? Surprise? Like Sieem said, you've seen one, you've seen them all, but that was only superficial. "Yes, I did."

"Ah," Isoto nodded and her eyes filled with wonder as she looked Freya up and down.

Trying her best to ignore the slight oddities, she sipped her tea. She noted that Isoto hadn't even touched hers. The awkward silence was lengthening as Freya tried to ignore Dr. Francis' munching.

"I apologize again," Isoto interrupted her thoughts. "I am in astonishment and have much honor that you, a friend of my brother's, would come to visit me."

Freya smiled and blushed. "Zidane suggested I come to see you, actually. He had nothing but praise for you."

"I am humbled," Isoto bowed her head, but raised it almost immediately. "He is well, I hope? And you are well?"

"Yes, to both," Freya replied.

"This ought to be a five-course meal," Dr. Francis piped in from the other side of the seating arrangement.

Freya scowled at him, but Isoto exclaimed, "I hope you are pleasantly surprised." And not a few seconds later, Mara returned with another tray with a number of covered dishes which she set down in front of Dr. Francis. He grabbed the napkin and fork and waited impatiently as Mara revealed steamed vegetables, soup, rice, and a main dish of roasted chicken still sizzling in its broth.

And while Dr. Francis ate, Isoto retold her story of having only glimpsed Zidane at the Black Mage Village and how she came to decide that she wished for being among Gaians and her journey through Treno and Alexandria before settling at Lindblum because of its unique character and beauty. In this city, she had worked at a restaurant in the day and worked at an inn at night for her residence until she had gathered enough money to get her own apartment. With her imagination and intellect, she became interested in restaurant design and eventually began her own business helping restaurants redesign both in appearances and operationally. Now, two years later, she had made enough money to buy a home to her liking and live here comfortably. Never once did she refer to Mara as her servant, but rather her best friend.

"If it wasn't for Zidane, or friends like Mara, I would have never been successful anywhere. I am forever indebted to their generosity and advice."

Dr. Francis wiped his mouth one last time and leaned back in his armchair. "Very interesting. How long do ye expect to be successful here?"

 _What kind of question is that?_ Freya glowered, but Isoto was still gracious. "As long as I am blessed."

"How long do ye expect to live anyway?"

"I really don't know. This environment is much different than where I came from, but I feel perfectly well."

"Are ye older than Zidane?"

She shook her head. "I am not sure."

"Hmph," Dr. Francis wiped his hands and placed his napkin atop his empty dish.

"So what brings you here, especially to me, a lowly Terran? You say you are from Daguerreo? I would wish to see that place at least once one day. It has piqued my curiosity at times to know there exists such a place where intellectual minds dwell. It must be wonderful."

"Bah," Dr. Francis waved his hand. "It is insanity. One is crazier than the next. We only live there because there is no other place for us. We are outcasts, useless, no one listens to us anyway, as they shouldn't. So I ask ye then: do Gaians accept ye here, outside of yer world?"

 _He's more clever than I give him credit for,_ Freya smiled inwardly.

"We have no world of our own. Yes, we have a society at the Village where we are generally accepted, but now that we are free, we have grown in our minds. Our interests are varied, when at one time we had no interests at all. I still cringe at how mindless we once were. The Village may be our safe place, but so many of us do not feel settled there. I am much happier and content here than there. I enjoy the Gaians. I embrace my new life and I protect this place because it is mine, too."

"Books and studies is my safe place, too, see. But are ye accepted here?"

She was silent for a moment. "Not entirely."

She didn't continue and Freya studied the pensive Terran whose eyes didn't stray from the empty dishes. And as if she had sent a silent message, Mara strode into the room and picked up the tray. "More tea?" Dr. Francis agreed heartily and Freya obliged politely. She noted that Isoto still had not touched her first cup of tea.

Beginning to feel bad, Freya interrupted the silence. "Daguerreo may not be our home by choice, as the Village may not be yours by choice, but we understand your silent suffering. We may change the world as it stands, but we cannot change minds. This is something we accept, because there is nothing else we can do. We remain strong in what our hearts cannot deny, no matter if the entire world doesn't understand."

"Thank you," Isoto looked up at her.

Was that gratefulness? Or just an reflexive response? Did she truly understand? Freya ignored the doubts. "We've departed from Daguerreo because there has been some strange events that occurred. Very tragic events. A doctor completed a manuscript titled 'An Assessment of Terra.' He committed suicide the night he completed it, and the book was stolen that same night too, and now after another suicide, please pardon them, in the name of Terra, the book was taken out of the library. We don't know its whereabouts, and Lindblum being the closest city, we have begun our search here."

She was quiet, maybe thoughtful, during Freya's discourse. "In the name of Terra?"

Freya nodded. "I was witness to both."

Isoto was expressionless, and that must have frustrated Dr. Francis. "It's another one of those kook cults, they say Terra is alive and coming back and that all the Gaians are going to die. Some prophecy or other-"

"What is the prophecy?"

"The blue shall fade and the protectors of this planet are returning," Freya intervened. That someone with two faces, hope and prosperity, deceit and treachery, is here. I don't know if the protectors and this person are one and the same. I was unable to read this book, but I know that it does make the claim that Terra is still alive."

Isoto shook her head. "It is not. We would know. Our red crystal is no longer. None of us feel it. This prophecy is nonsense, and if the prophecy came from this book, it is nonsense, too."

"I can't agree with ye more," Dr. Francis declared, finishing up his tea. "But as it stands, this cult isn't going to go away on its own. I'd like to think Daguerreo an unrelated incident, but I'm afraid it isn't. We need to find out who's behind it. But ye were our last lead."

"Me?" Isoto looked puzzled.

"Not exactly..." Freya looked at Dr. Francis in bewilderment, too.

"Yes," he glared back at her. "Our last lead of the day. It's past suppertime and now where are we going to stay for the night?"

She turned red in embarrassment.

"You both are most welcome to spend the night here," Isoto exclaimed a bit loudly. To get their attention or quell Freya's (embarrassment)?

Freya quickly proffered a negative but was, of course, interrupted by Dr. Francis' (hearty) agreement, to which he proceeded to stand up, stretch, and ask where his room was.

 _He has been up all night and all day, how could I forget. Even I,_ she suppressed a yawn at the thought, _am quite tired._

"Mara!" Isoto called out, and the young lady appeared almost instantly.

"Please show them to their rooms, they will be spending the night here." Mara stiffened at this, her mouth turning into a thin line. But she nodded once and glanced at Dr. Francis who was already standing beside her tapping his foot.

"I am most grateful," Freya stood up when Isoto did.

"It is the least I can do." Isoto looked up at her. "I'm sorry I could not be of more help. The prophecies make no sense to me. If you'd like, I can ask around about this book, but I can't guarantee anything that is hearsay."

"It's alright," Freya assured her. "We will get to the bottom of this."

"I hope you do," Isoto nodded. "You are free to do as you like. I will be retiring soon as I have an early appointment tomorrow morning. But you can stay as long as you wish, and Mara will oblige to whatever Dr. Francis wishes, I will make sure of it."

Freya chuckled.

"Here, I will show you your room. Please, you are my honored guests, what is mine is yours. Mara is always nearby if you need anything."

Freya repeated her thank yous, blushing at the generosity.

Once in her room, she sat down on the soft bed and couldn't help but sink into its enticing luxury. Sleep loomed like an unwelcome shadow, but her thoughts were a jumbled mess. And before she could attempt to organize her mind, Dr. Francis opened the door.

"Care to share a pipe with me outside?"

 _And a stiff drink, too._ Nodding and feeling as if she could barely breathe, she followed the doctor down the hallway that led to a simple but quaint stone patio. Beyond the small yard that was privately surrounded on each side with tall bushes, the evening sky glowed brilliantly in rich purples and gold.

Dr. Francis poked his head back into the house and shouted for Mara. Freya shook her head as she almost collapsed into the cushioned patio chair, exhaustion creeping up on her. _Poor girl. We must leave first thing in the morning too before he torments her any more_.


	12. Chapter 11

He puffed on his pipe as Freya took tired sips from her wine glass. The contrast of the setting sun under the deep azure sky lessened quickly, the candles on the outdoor table lit with Dr. Francis' matches as they sat together in silence.

"She is cold," Dr. Francis stated after a drowsy half an hour of quiet. "Now I see why they think they're soulless."

Freya shook her head. "They have known nothing but being expressionless for the better part of their years. It is hard for them to adjust."

"Years? And yer friend seems just fine."

"He has been on Gaia since he was a child. He did not grow up on Terra like they did."

"She's not very intelligent."

"Now Dr. Francis," she turned to him. "It's the prophecies that are unintelligent. Madness, you said so yourself."

"So we came here to hear her agree?"

"You didn't have to."

"Eh," he settled himself deeper into the cushions. "If I didn't ask, we'd be spending the night in the gutter."

"You're being extreme." Freya sighed with his foolishness.

"Where will we go tomorrow?"

Freya was silent. None of these avenues had worked out. _Have we been asking the wrong questions? Have we been too hasty?_

"Are ye leaving for Terra tomorrow?" Dr. Francis interrupted her thoughts.

She looked at him. "Do you truly believe it's gone?"

"It means nothing to me, but wouldn't it be curious if it wasn't?"

"It would be very concerning if it wasn't," Freya corrected. "And how could it mean nothing to you?"

"Terra isn't my turf."

"Then why did you come with me?"

"Because I stay far away from madness."

"But it had already left."

"Maybe it didn't."

She frowned. Her tired thoughts weren't making sense anymore, and neither was Dr. Francis. "I will probably eventually go to make sure, if I don't find any information here. Would you accompany me or no?"

"Go to see the rest of the blank faces? Eh, I can pass."

 _I'm glad to hear that. But where would he stay?_ "What exactly is your doctorate, Dr. Francis?"

"Architecture. And some other things."

She couldn't suppress a chuckle.

"It's complicated business, I tell ye, what's so funny!"

"You're full of surprises, Dr. Francis. It is a compliment."

"I should hope so!"

"..." She finished her glass and stared at the half-emptied wine bottle.

"Ye can't go into Terra alone."

"...?" Just the mere suggestion of planning more arrangements made her pour herself another glass of wine.

"I say ye can't do that by yerself."

 _I'm not a leader. I'm a follower. This is why all my personal endeavors fail. Even now, I have failed this small mission._ She hung her head with her nose in the glass.

"Ye need someone to hold ye up when ye get down, like ye are right now."

He was intuitive when he wanted to be. And ignorant when he wanted to be, like all intellects. "Who would come with me, Dr. Francis? This was a hair-brained idea to begin with, and..." Her thoughts wandered to someone unexpected. The flame she stared at with glassy eyes told her a name she hadn't thought of in a long time.

"So ye tested a hypothesis and it turned out a dud, so what? Happens all the time."

"But..." She shook the name out of her head. "Where did that book go then?"

"Hopefully someone jumped off a cliff with it. That's a proper ending."

She wanted to laugh. _Someone I could almost relate to..._ She shook her head again and took another drought. _No, bad news, bad friends corrupts good minds..._ She took another drought.

"Holy Daggi, what's got into yer head that ye'r gonna finish the whole bottle?" Dr. Francis puffed and puffed, his eyes obscured by the drifting smoke.

"I need to lay down." Drinking this fast again wasn't an activity her body was familiar with. The numbness crept into open arms.

"Not so fast," Dr. Francis put his hand on her arm.

She looked up at him slowly.

"Ye look like ye'r gonna cry. Slow down. What's botherin' ye? What's it?" He puffed and puffed.

"I... I don't know what to do. I feel... like I've failed. I... always fail when I'm on my own."

"Eh," Dr. Francis shrugged. "I just said ye can't go alone. So why ye crying over something obvious?"

"Because I am alone."

"Are ye? Are ye truly?" He puffed. "I think not. Ye'r too controlling. Too controlling of yerself. How many times I tell ye to relax? Ye'r the only one making life hard. Life isn't perfect. It never was. And neither are you. So stop trying to make it so. Let it be."

She looked up at him. "I have friends but... they aren't really there anymore."

"Now ye'r just feeling sorry for yerself. I don't believe ye've went yer whole life and made it this far by being miserable."

"It was circumstance."

"Circumstance made you help save the world? Ye could've said no. Circumstance made Fratley lose his mind? It's not yer fault. Stop beating yerself up for circumstances out of yer control. Control yer negativity, Miss Freya."

"How did you know about...?" She shook her head. _It's not worth it. I wish I wasn't important. I wouldn't put these demands on myself if I wasn't somebody. I used to be somebody._ She jumped when he slammed his hand on the table, the candle and glasses tittering.

"I said stop feeling sorry for yerself!"

She stared at him.

"Now you go wash up and go to bed. And tomorrow, we're going back to the library to see if these windbags will front an expedition for ye and another person to go and make sure this damned Terra is gone forever. Then we can all sleep in peace. Put an end to all those daydreamers. _That's_ why we're here." He stood up. "Go on," he gestured to Freya.

She finally comprehended his speech, nodded, and stood up.

Isoto had indeed gone out before they had even awoken the next day. Mara was stiff and not entirely friendly, and they departed for the Court Library soon after they had a morning coffee and toast. Dr. Francis warned Mara that he was returning that evening, but Freya reassured her they wouldn't burden them anymore than they already had.

Dr. Francis argued for his lodgings to remain at Isoto's as they made their way to the library and Freya argued that it was entirely unnecessary and unfair for Isoto. He gave up when she began brainstorming the possible upcoming trip, and they arrived at the library in stable spirits. He would go in and negotiate while she waited outside.

She sat at the bottommost stair at the end. It was still relatively early and she hoped this wouldn't turn into an all-day affair. _So I'm going to the Black Mage Village. They call it 'the Village' now. There can't be that many black mages left, there probably aren't any left there at all. I won't start looking for someone to come with me until we get the approval. Like Dr. Francis said, I can't dwell on negatives. But was this all a waste? Where is that book?_

"K-kupo!"

Startled, she saw a moogle fluttering towards her.

"Kupo! Miss Freya!" It bowed very low.

"Nice to meet you," Freya managed a small smile.

"Kupo! Very nice! I am Mori! Noggy did not say you would be here!"

Noggy was Daguerreo's synthesizer's helper. "I left in short notice. I didn't see the synthesizer before I left, please give him my apologies."

"No matter, kupo! Why are you here now?"

"I'm going to make sure Terra is gone. There have been bad rumors about its return, and I need to make sure they aren't true."

"Kupo! I have heard bad things too. But you cannot believe everything you hear, kupo." He finally stopped flitting and landed on the stair beside her.

She nodded. This was the longest conversation she'd ever had with one of these peculiar creatures. "Do you work with Artemecion?"

"No, but Mognet is fine now that he has learned his lesson, kupo! Do you want to send a letter?"

"..." _But perhaps a moogle would know more than the standard self-absorbed city dweller?_ "Do you know of any recent thefts? More specifically, a book from Daguerreo?"

"Yes, kupo, Noggy has told everyone he knows." He leaned forward, his eyes squinty and mischievous. "They look in his letters, kupo. But this time it's okay because he want everyone to know this: two people including author died for this book, then two thieves took it away without telling anyone, kupo!"

She felt her heart skip a beat. "Do they know where they took the book?"

"Noggy thinks they took it to the Shimmering Island. Noggy thinks they make new religion from it, kupo! Book has to do with Terra. That's bad news, kupo, so I'm happy to hear you are going to make sure it has gone away forever."

"The Shimmering Island... of course." She hung her head. _Of course. Where Gaia's religion began. The entrance to Terra._

" 'Of course,' kupo?"

"I was going to the Village, Mori, but I may go to the Shimmering Island instead. This is why I left Daguerreo, to find that book."

"May I tell Noggy? He is very upset, kupo!"

"Yes," she nodded. "But this information should be kept secret. I am very happy you told this to me." _Happier than you'll ever know._ She wanted to hug this small white creature with his smart black vest.

"It's a bad book, kupo. Bad things, and make people do bad things. Kupo! I hope Terra is dead!"

"Me too, Mori, me too."

He leaned toward her again, that mischievous look sparkling in his eye slits. "I not talk about your friend Zidane, kupo, but I don't like the other Terrans. I don't think they ever got their souls, kupo."

"They are trying."

"But you cannot get soul if you are not born with it, kupo." He nodded in all seriousness.

"I don't think they mean any harm, Mori."

"I'm not talking about that kupo, I mean they have no heart. They may mean good but they are not whole. I scared of them, kupo!" He gripped her arm to prove it to her.

She chuckled and gave him a weak pat on his back. "You are smarter than all of us, Mori. We are indebted to your kind."

"Yes, kupo, but you must keep us safe, too!"

"I shall," Freya nodded.

"Kupo! Now I will tell Noggy, he will be relieved! Kupo!" He bowed quickly many times before he flew off in a rush.

 _The Shimmering Island. How could I have not figured this out!_ She balled up her hand into a fist and hit herself on the forehead.

She smiled and shook her head. _What a miracle._ She looked across the small plaza in front of her, at the mulling pedestrians and rushing scholars. Life could be so simple sometimes. The moogles proved that (principle) effortlessly.

"...!" She spied a familiar head of hair that quickly turned the corner.

She looked around. Would anyone notice? Probably. Dr. Francis wouldn't be out that quickly. Freya stood up and jumped.


	13. Chapter 12

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* * *

 _Why here? What the devil is he doing here?_ She leapt to the roof that overlooked the corner of the street. He was fast, but the furiously disoriented pedestrians he disturbed on his way made it easy to follow his trail. She went to the next rooftop. And then the next one. _I hope he doesn't do this all day._ He wasn't one to give up, if ever at all.

It wasn't long before she had left the Business District. As she suspected, she soon found herself in the Industrial District. _Where he's most comfortable._

And then the haphazard trail ceased.

After a quick survey, she made a gathered assumption of the vicinity and she remained perched on the roof overlooking the street as she caught her breath. A quarter of an hour passed and deciding he wasn't coming out but was instead inviting her in, she made her dramatic drop to the sidewalk and strode to the doors of the crooked tavern.

In the back was where she found him. He said nothing as she took the high chair beside him. She signaled to the waiter for a drink and then folding her hands on the table, she looked at him.

She knew he wouldn't break the silence despite his occasional furtive glance in her direction. So it was up to her. "So what's the occasion?"

"Filing a complaint."

"You?" She let a glitter pass across her eyes in amusement. "Something you can't take care of yourself?"

"..."

"What could it possibly be?"

"...Your kind."

The waiter arrived with her drink and she slipped him a coin. His intimation registered as she took a sip. She blinked at him. "You don't mean Lani?"

He winced.

Freya put her hand to her mouth to hide her grin. "Has it gotten that bad? What could you possibly have against her?"

"I go alone."

"Not all the time, I'm sure she's noticed. She's seen you with quite a few friends, I can attest to that."

His eyes darkened under the red hood of dreads. "She isn't welcome."

"With how much you detest her, one would start to think you secretly adore her," she exclaimed, trying to exclude the giggling from the statement.

"I would make friends with the entire planet if she would leave me alone."

"Have you-"

"Everything, damn it. Now why are you chasing me halfway across town?"

Now it was Freya's turn to darken, and she took another sip. _Dare I ask him...? Oh no, what if Dr. Francis is looking for me? I should just get to the point._ "I have a favor to ask of you."

He crossed his arms and leaned back in his chair. His blueish skin nearly glowed in the dim light.

"It would take you far from here," she attempted a weak coaxing. She noticed he'd already finished his drink. It probably took at least twenty more before he could feel even remotely inebriated.

His face remained stoic, his eyes hidden under shadows.

 _Who knows what goes on in that head,_ she sighed. "I was waiting for my friend at the Library for the trip's approval. We probably will receive it, but I am in need of a partner-"

"Ask your fine-tailed friend."

She frowned. "He's your friend, too. And he has declined."

"Too busy flirting, acting, sleeping in, stupid kiddy stuff?"

"It's his business," she felt rather insulted at his demeaning words. "And as it is, you were my next choice."

His frown deepened. "…Why?"

"Because you're competent," she replied. This part was easy because it was true. "You're level-headed, and you're strong. You're intelligent."

"So are you, you don't need me."

"..." _He needs more incentive. Money? He_ was _a mercenary, after all. But what money do I have? Nothing! Well..._ "Perhaps if the library compensated your efforts with a monetary bonus?"

"What's the occasion?"

Now it became vague. "We would basically be making sure that Terra is indeed gone." _And finding out what this cult is about. And making sure those prophecies are untrue. ...And finding out if Terrans have souls._

"You're getting paid for that?"

"Well..."

"You're insulting me."

"It _is_ a bit more complicated than that..." _No one actually ever mentioned money... Ugh, why do I bother making things up._

There was silence. Freya gulped down the rest of her drink.

Still more silence.

 _This_ is _his usual game..._ "Would you consider it? I would most likely be departing this evening, it is a rather urgent investigation."

Silence.

"I have to return to the library. Amarant, please, consider...?"

The stoic blue statue remained mute.

She bowed her head and got up from the table.

"If you do consider, then please find me outside the Dragon's Gate tonight at sunset."

He didn't move, and she left.

"Money he wants?" Dr. Francis grinned. "And what's he going to do with it?"

Freya shrugged. "Wine? Tobacco? Lodgings?"

"With all that greed, he should pay someone to get that head huntress off his back, hmph!"

"They are expensive for a reason. Amarant himself probably fetched the highest price, Lani a close second."

"And he quit?"

"To the best of my knowledge," Freya bent her head in doubt.

The committee had approved of the trip with a small allowance that Freya knew immediately would barely suffice more than one night outside of the city. It didn't help that Dr. Francis bragged to them about his gold chocobo to which they applauded his sufficiency and brilliance in eliminating transportation funding from the budget. Amarant wouldn't work for the measly 150 gil that had been handed to her. Add another zero to that and he would still scoff.

"That was foolish of him. So maybe ye take Isoto with ye and I stay with Mara. She cooks a mean bisque."

"Don't be silly. I will find you a pleasant and safe place for you to stay. And you would be near enough to the library to entertain your friends here." She shuddered involuntarily at the thought of Isoto. It wasn't that she was evil, but there was a creeping oddness to her that made the world slightly off-balance. Was it because she was a Terran, did all Terrans give off a strange vibe? Was it the sentiments of Sieem that was only temporarily setting her views askew? She hadn't noticed anything peculiar the last time she had interacted with the Terrans with Zidane. But then again, that was in tumultuous and changing times, she hadn't been settled in body and spirit to notice these sorts of things. She wasn't sure what was normal anymore, if there ever were such a thing.

No matter. She would have her chance of meeting more Terrans, no doubt. Sooner rather than later, it seemed. Though she told Dr. Francis of her personal ambitions, she neglected to inform the committee that she would be making an initial diversion to the Shimmering Island. She hated to take advantage of their naiveté, but they were most positive that the whole endeavor would take over a month to investigate. That was more than enough time for her to accomplish both objectives. Better to come back early than late.

And it appeared that she would have to go whether or not she had a companion. Perhaps it were better that way.

She spent the rest of the afternoon setting up a short-term living arrangement for Dr. Francis and sharpening up her weapon and armor. She would have to rehearse her dragon skills - hopefully they hadn't receded into the depths of her mind from disuse and faded into nonexistence.

The evening hour came earlier than she anticipated and bidding her good-byes to a distracted and hungry Dr. Francis, she set off to the Dragon's Gate with her essentials. Shoofie was to meet her in the same location he had dropped them off... hopefully.

With only a small lamp, she found herself sitting alone on the hillside watching the goodfolk prepare themselves for the next humdrum day. Shoofie was nowhere in sight. She even tried whistling, but to no avail.

Dusk turned to twilight, twilight turned to dusk, and the stars began appearing steadily one by one above her. With thoughts of the Terrans and the odds of finding the book at the Shimmering Island, she began dozing in the cool evening.

"Looks like your ride stood you up."

Freya jumped, gripping her trident and whirled to meet her ambusher.

"Amarant," she sighed, his presence sending a surge of surprise, then relief, through her.

"I thought you'd left already."

"Well," she brushed herself off and glanced around. "Beggars can't be choosers. What are you doing here?"

"What does it look like I'm doing here?" He raised one of his fists, his Rune Claws glittering in the moonlight.

"I really thought you wouldn't to come."

"..."

 _Not a conversation worth pursuing, I suppose._

"Where are we off to, anyway?"

"First, we'll be going to Shimmering Island."

"Sounds like this has something to do with Terra."

"Correct," she nodded. "Then if my trip to the Shimmering Island is unfruitful, we'll proceed to the Black Mage Village... They call it the Village, now."

"I know. What's to do at the Shimmering Island?"

With one eye on the lookout for a golden speck somewhere, anywhere, she recounted the mystery of Dr. Bani and his book. He only crossed his arms and shook his head.

"You sound bored," Amarant shrugged after she completed her story.

"'Bored?'" She peered up at him.

"You're chasing books around the globe and watching for shadows."

"I think a lot of us would rest easier if we knew Terra was truly gone."

"You think the book has to do with Terra coming back? I think Terra's always been here and the book's an afterthought."

"Have you heard things from your travels?" She knew better than to ask him where he'd been.

He shrugged again. "Just a feeling."

 _He's always been a terse fellow. Never says more than he has to, and always straight to the point. It's going to be like old times. I... no. We have nothing in common._

"So where's your ride?"

"Shoofie... a gold chocobo."

He raised his eyebrow but said nothing.

She searched the skies again, but only more stars appeared behind the few passing airships.


	14. Chapter 13

Shoofie eventually arrived in the late hours of the night. The short nap she had taken prior to Amarant's unexpected appearance had left her charged and awake for the trip to the cold north. As it was, Shoofie took a liking to the red-headed giant. The mercenary denied ever laying eyes on him before and ignored the bird's head bobs and coos. By dawn, she spotted the volcano, the former entrance to Terra, on the horizon. She nudged Amarant but he only grunted.

The sun was blazing strongly in the icy air when they finally landed at the bottom of the glacier. Where Shoofie would go, Freya wasn't sure, but after Amarant's insistent shoving him away as he tried to follow them, the bird finally got the hint and sulked away to the shoreline where he dejectedly launched off.

"They're particular creatures, aren't they," Freya suggested.

Amarant sniffed and trudged towards the spiraling entrance to Esto Gaza. He turned back to Freya. "So what makes you think the book ended up here?"

They began up the stairs side by side. Freya appreciated his patience. "This is where religion finds its beginning. It would be here. If it isn't, then I'm at a loss."

"Makes sense. Not a lot of pilgrims coming up here anymore though."

"Are there many pilgrims left anyway?"

He shook his head. "Pilgrims for what? It's a faithless world we live in."

"Not entirely true..." she replied quietly. Either he didn't hear her or had nothing more to say because they ascended the rest of the way in silence.

The fans, the platforms, the pillars, the cold north wind, it all made her shudder to see it all again. The last time they had been here, they had rushed through as quickly as they could to find Eiko before the twin clowns had their way with her eidolons.

A few folks bundled up in their furs shuffled by them, and it was calm and still rather early. They went immediately to the temple where they had last found the high priest. He wasn't there. Only a few early worshipers loitered nearby the shrine.

"We'll sit and wait. Maybe we'll hear something."

The two went as far the back into the hall as they could and sat down, soaking in the warmth after the cold flight.

"How are you planning on finding the book here? You're just going to ask?"

"I'll ask them about Terra. We'll know if they're hiding something," Freya replied, surprised at how sure of herself she sounded.

"They're all esoteric up here, I'm not so sure."

"No matter," she shook her head. "We'll find something."

"And then what? Take the book and burn it?"

She shook her head harder this time. "No. I'd like to read it for myself. But I also want to know what these prophecies are all about."

"Read it? If that's the case, then I'll see you later. Going to the Village to talk to those clones would make more sense than coming all the way to this frozen glacier."

"I'll ask questions, first."

"Yeah, and they're just going to hand the book to you."

"I knew Dr. Bani, perhaps they'll be more open to me."

He waved his hand. "This is what we'll do." He stood up and began walking away from her. She stared after him. _Is he leaving? What is he doing?_ Concern flooded her soul. "Where are you going?" She whispered to him as loud as she dared. And then she realized that someone, the high priest himself, had entered the building.

She hurriedly gathered herself up and began after him.

He had already begun a conversation with the fidgety high priest.

"Who are you, and how dare you come and ask me such a repulsive question!"

Amarant took a step toward him and the bishop shrank back in fear. Freya arrived just at that moment and placed a hand on Amarant.

"Please," she turned to the bishop. "Forgive my friend, sometimes he can be rather blunt."

"Blunt indeed!" The bishop brushed his vest and glared up at Amarant. "Are _you_ some Terra worshiper?"

Whatever Amarant had said must have been beyond blunt! And she noticed the two people near the shrine peeking at them and then slink away. _What was he thinking!_

"That's what I'm asking you," Amarant retorted. "You worship the stars here, so I ask you if there's a new religion for Terra. I want to know about it."

"Religion?" The bishop cried. "Religion?!"

She didn't know what to say.

"I heard there's a book out there that has to do with Terra coming back to take over Gaia. So I want to know about it."

"B-book! Terran book...!" He sputtered, clenching and unclenching his hands.

Amarant leaned down, ignoring Freya's pointless hand on his chest. "I see you're hiding something."

"Amarant, what are you doing!" She whispered to him and turned quickly to the bishop. "Please, he can be a little rash, we just-"

"R-rash!" He looked back and forth at them, backing up against the railing.

"We heard some rumors and words spoken about Terra and the coming of some protectors of the planet," Amarant continued. "We want to know what _you_ know about it."

The bishop's mouth opened and closed, and opened and closed again, eyes still darting back and forth between them.

Amarant glared for another few seconds, then stood back up. "Come on Freya, this one's useless."

She just stared at him.

"F-Freya?" The bishop croaked. "The Freya from the group of yore?"

"Yes," she held onto Amarant and tried to look as docile as she could despite her fury at Amarant.

"Ah-h." He looked even more frightened than before. "Why have you come here?"

"Sir, we would just like to know if there is any new information about Terra."

"Well, well, plenty of prophecies and planet talk here, plenty, but I don't know what you're looking for, I mean, we are always searching for answers, we are not always correct as we like to believe, but certainly there have been some things, er, words, er, signs of the gods-"

"Stop your babbling," Amarant interrupted. "Freya, this man knows exactly what we're asking of him but he just wants to play games. Let's find someone who isn't afraid of his own shadow." And he walked away, leaving Freya to stand alone with the high priest.

As soon as Amarant closed the door to the temple, the bishop sighed audibly that ended in a whimper.

"Sir, I would just like to know more about these prophecies and rumors I've heard about Terra."

"Why?"

She hated that question. "Because I'd like to know if Terra is still alive."

His countenance changed and he seemed to stand up a little straighter. "It is."

Alarm jolted through her like lightning. "But how do you know this?"

"We had a Terran himself come here from Terra, now partially destroyed but still alive. He told us that it is returning and even as you and I speak, at this very moment, the red crystal is devouring the blue crystal." His face was entirely serene, as if he were reciting the morning prayers for the umpteenth time.

 _He didn't even call it 'our' crystal._ "How can you say this so calmly?"

"Because it is inevitable. Gaia is not and can never be as powerful as Terra. Terra is mature, and therefore stronger, smarter, and wiser, than us petty Gaians."

"But why would someone from Terra warn us of this? Who was this Terran?"

"He called himself Duma. He was here many moons ago, and bespoke of returning again soon."

"Duma...? But it still doesn't make sense! Why would Duma, a Terran, warn us of doom?"

"He told us that he would inspire one of us to expound upon this knowledge. Finally, we have received this inspiration and we are only beginning to understand the brilliant and remarkable magnificence and knowledge of Terra. This book is merely a taste of what Terra beholds."

"But why warn us?"

The bishop smiled. "To save us, those who would believe, of course."

She shivered. That ghost of a smile she had seen before, twice. Now three times. Her stomach turned. "This inspiration... wouldn't have been a book written by Dr. Bani, would it?"

"Why, yes, how did you know!" A tremendous scowl formed on his face.

She winced.

Her silence he mistook and his face lightened. "Now don't be humble. I know why you are here. You who once helped Gaia eliminate the Mist and its purposes, are now realizing that there are many more ways for Terra's fusion spell to succeed than through something so obvious as the Iifa Tree. You have been enlightened!"

"..." She knew the high priest to be a fearful and arrogant man, full of hot air, but she now realized he too had lost his mind.

"But your blue friend there," he leaned toward her despite the temple being empty, "he doesn't believe. If he held any respect, he would be here asking questions like yourself!"

 _But he was asking questions... oh dear, what is going on! Better to play the game as long as I can, then get out of here._ "I am curious to how these prophecies are grounded. I would like to see the book."

He raised his eyebrow. "Not anyone can see this holy book. Only I and those I've personally selected can review and study this priceless tome. It is only for the chosen, you see. We wouldn't want just anyone to sit beside the Terran high rulers."

"Then can I ask who the protectors of the planet are?"

His face suddenly darkened and he lowered his head to peer up at her. "How do you know all this?"

"I was once a friend of Dr. Bani," she bowed her head for a moment in respect.

"So... he shared its contents with you?"

"I was there the moment before he died, sir, and that is what he told me."

"Yes, but why...? Well never mind, it appears he trusted you."

"He trusted me enough to delegate me with the book the moment he finished it," she added hastily.

"Well I'm glad to know it came as soon as it did. I sincerely thank you for its expedient delivery."

"..." That didn't turn out as expected.

"The protectors of the planet are mentioned very early in the book. It is obviously a reference to eidolons, most undoubtedly Terra's eidolons."

"Terra had eidolons?" This was concerning.

"Indeed! Do you consider Gaia to be so superior and unique as to be the only ones possessing such power? Certainly not!"

 _I never thought of it that way... oh dear._ "Did Duma say where he was going?"

"We wouldn't dare to ask such a personal question! He should return soon... he was last here about six moons ago."

 _They must be getting impatient. And that's about the time Dr. Bani began his book._ "Terrans live among us in the rest of Gaia, do they know of this?"

"They have been preparing for this for quite some time now, yes."

 _Interesting..._ "So Duma is reviving Terra?"

The high priest bowed his head. "All our prayers belong to his grace."

"And what of Mikoto?"

"What of her?"

"She is their self-appointed leader and representative, at least to Gaia's understanding. I've just come from Lindblum, there has been no talk of Terra returning, nor has there even been mention of it."

"They will know soon enough. And when they know, it will be too late."

"But what of Gaia?"

"What of it? It will be dissolved into Terra, as was its original goal."

"And what of you and all of... Duma's followers?"

"We have been promised a grand place among Terra."

"..." She didn't know what to say anymore.

The high priest bowed his head to her and folded his hands, an uncomfortable silence now settling between them.

"I thank you for sharing this with me," Freya began, hoping he wouldn't realize that she didn't agree with him. "I've only arrived this morning, I will need to rest after my travels."

"..."

She took his silence as predicted hostility and she made her exit.

The cold air hit her hard and she looked left and right for her hot-headed friend. Perhaps he'd gone to the lower levels. She visited the mythril shop, now rather low in wares, but he wasn't there. He wasn't in the lower levels of the residential quarter, and she resurfaced and made her way towards the Mt. Gulug entrance. Would he go in there?

Making sure no one was following her, she slipped into the mineshaft.


	15. Chapter 14

He stood a ways down the right-hand path, leaning on a building and gazing down into the depths of the dead volcano. She approached him and he didn't look up until she stood within a foot of him.

"So? What'd you find?" He asked without even a glance.

"It's... a very strange... I don't know what to call it. I can't say it's a religion."

"Starting from the beginning would make sense."

She frowned at him. "Did you have to be so rude?"

"Seems like you did just fine. So what?"

She shook her head and sighed. "It appears that someone from Terra, someone named Duma, came here and told them that Terra was returning, and anyone who believes, or possibly worships him, would be promised a prestigious position on Terra once Terra takes over Gaia. He claims that Duma inspired Dr. Bani to write this book to enlighten them about Terra. And as they're fawning over this book, and as I speak, Terra's crystal is taking over ours. And the Terrans on this planet are in on it!"

Amarant rolled his eyes. "That's a lot of hooey."

"... They, or, he anyway, seems to feel very strongly about it."

"These people are killing themselves for Terra? For some nonsense promise?"

"That's what I can't understand! They don't see Terra as an enemy, but something to look up to!" She shook her head and flopped down onto the slats. Amarant had lit a few of the torches nearby and the orange glow began to warm her chilled bones. But it couldn't take the chill out of her soul.

"Bunch of horseshit." He sat down beside her. "Bunch of wishful thinking from wishy-washy weaklings. They go from one thing to the next. And this Duma? He _inspired_ your doctor friend to write a book about Terra?"

"I half believe it, only because most of that book contained things I'd never heard of before."

He shrugged. "Still a bunch of horseshit."

She chuckled half-heartedly. "It's very disturbing."

"..."

Silence ensued for a few minutes.

Amarant broke it: "Wish I had a drink."

She nodded in agreement. "At least it's warm in here."

"Think they'll come looking for you, now that you made them suspicious?" Amarant looked at her.

"What's an old bishop going to do to me?" Freya shook her head. "He didn't have to answer my questions if he didn't want to."

"So now what?"

"Now... I suppose we have to see if Terra is dead... or not."

"And you think the Terrans in the Village are going to help us make sure their planet is dead?"

"..."

"And this Duma... Name sounds familiar, you know."

She turned to look at him. "Where?" _And when were you planning on letting me in on that?_

"Treno, I think. Some noble small-talk, you know how they like to drop names."

"Nobles?" She furrowed her brow in thought. He was quiet as she sorted her swirling thoughts. "Do you think maybe this is all a hoax?"

He looked at her through the side of his eyes. "Sounds like you think Terra's not still kickin'."

She covered her eyes half in exasperation and the other half in defeat. "Anything is possible, I've come to learn. But it never ceases to sadden me every time I see deceit and treachery in this world."

"Hmph. We're not the only planet with that ailment. Unless we're all zombie children, like those Terrans."

What a price to pay! "I would be quite angered if this was some nobleman's idea of a joke!"

"But no one else, as far as you know, knows about this 'plan.'"

"There is plenty of contention against Terrans though."

"That's strictly on a social level. I'm referring to a conscious awareness."

"Wait... deceit and treachery..."

"That's what you said."

"That's what the prophecy said, too."

Amarant laughed loudly. It echoed eerily down into the depth. "Now that's twisted! Who _isn't_ full of deceit and treachery these days!" He guffawed again.

"Duma."

"He's going to let everyone know he's demented?" He only snickered now.

She groaned and rubbed her eyes.

"Wish we had that drink."

She nodded, keeping her hands over her eyes. Her head was starting to hurt, and she _was_ tired. So tired. Fretting kept her awake, but she knew it prevented her from analyzing anything properly.

"Want me to go find some?"

She looked at him.

He shrugged and got up.

 _And I'll stay here worrying._ She watched him disappear into the darkness.

She awoke with a start. Amarant had returned with a few drinks before and after consuming them, they had consequently collapsed from exhaustion. Now the torches had gone out, and only a dim sliver of light appeared from the volcano's entrance above them. The night sky glittered back at her upturned eyes. She heard Amarant snoring quietly beside her and she shook him awake.

Without warning, a sudden ball of light appeared beside her and she saw a ball of flame in Amarant's palm.

He stared back at her. "Where to?"

She swallowed, suppressing a yawn. "I fear we won't be obtaining this book tonight."

"...I kind of figured that. Then again, it is an opportune time for obtaining books."

She raised her eyebrow. "I refuse to operate that way."

"I kind of figured that, too. Well, I always hated looking for objects. People are easy to find. Inanimate trinkets are not."

"I thought you stopped doing those sorts of things."

"..."

"Well," she sighed. "Now that we know the book is here, I suppose we ought to go on to the Village. I need to send Dr. Francis a letter before I go. Perhaps he can do some of his own work with his friends to procure this manuscript."

They exited the volcano and the moogle they'd seen earlier wasn't in his usual location behind the temple. But it couldn't have been very late because the lights were still glowing brightly from the temple. They re-entered the temple and like that morning, it was empty save a few stragglers huddling near the fire the keep warm.

They spotted the moogle near the merchant's stand.

"Kupo-po!" The moogle immediately spied the two and flitted towards them. She smiled at the creature as it landed beside her and bowed. "At your service, Miss Crescent and Mr. Coral."

"Thank you," she replied. "I need to send a letter to a Dr. Francis."

"Yes, kupo!" He bobbed his head, the red tuft bobbing with it. "Mori has been busy conversing with him!"

"Oh has he," she shook her head. The professor and the moogle probably carried most interesting conversations. She squatted down to the creature's height. "I need to tell him that the book is here and for the moment, I cannot access it. And that I'm now proceeding to the Village."

The moogle narrowed his eyes and peered around before looking back at her. "This has always been an interesting post, kupo. I know what you are referring to."

An idea suddenly occurred to her. "Were you here six moons ago when this Duma came here?"

"Duma, kupo? I do not recall a Duma."

Her hopes sank as quickly as they had arisen. "The bishop told me that a Terran had come here, by the name of Duma, and I'm led to believe he inspired this recent resurgence of Terra's return."

"Ku-po..." He waddled even closer to her. "There has never been a Terran here."

"But..." _Would the bishop lie to me? I would believe this moogle any day over a delusional preacher._ "Do you remember anyone peculiar around six moons ago?"

"Oh yes, kupo, I see strangers every day, maybe some regulars, but kupo, I do not know their names unless they have a letter to send. Six moons ago I saw a man with long black hair and a long black coat come here. Maybe this is the Duma, kupo? He was not here long, but he did talk to the bishop."

Freya turned to Amarant for any sign of recognition. Amarant shrugged. She looked back to him. "I will keep that in mind, thank you."

"Kupo! Will you be leaving now?"

She nodded, standing up.

"Then I will call your chocobo!"

At last, a genuine smile crossed her face. "You can do that? I would be so grateful." She hadn't even contemplated waiting in this subzero tundra for her ride. That could have been a mistake.

The moogle withdrew a small whistle from an obscure pocket and blew into it. No sound came out. He put the whistle down. "He should be where you last saw him, kupo!"

She bowed to him.

"I will send your letter immediately! Fare well, good-bye, kupo!"

The two travelers made their exit, a cold northern wind whipping their coats.

Shoofie was waiting at the bottom of the small fortress and they departed immediately. Thankfully, the bird was warm despite the cold air and Shoofie traveled at a lazy pace. With Shoofie's body heat and the never-ending waves below them, Freya felt herself drifting off to sleep again.

It was early morning when her eyes reopened. Dry red earth rolled by underneath them, mountains surrounding the horizon. It looked vaguely familiar. The Northern Continent was an entirely different landscape than the lush green continent if the Mist Continent.

"Could you get us there as close as possible?" Freya leaned forward.

"Kweh!"

The bird didn't change direction and she hoped this docile yet unpredictable creature was following orders. She turned and glanced back at Amarant. He was awake, staring off at the passing scenery.

"The moogle's description of Duma didn't remind you of anyone?"

He shook his head, not bothering to look at her. "I think that bishop's a lunatic."

"Perhaps..." But she didn't know what else to say, because she too thought the same. "Perhaps it's a man pretending to be a Terran?"

"Lots of people do that. Kuja did that, if you recall. As if he was ashamed."

"I believe there were many facets to why he did that. However, Zidane never hid his identity."

"Because he didn't know the difference," Amarant sneered.

She frowned. She was getting a crick in her neck from craning her head to look at him. "There's no reason for old grudges, Amarant."

"..."

"Let's get to the village and I'd like to settle this once and for all. We'll put that book aside for now." She faced forward, and sighed in relief when she saw the dark woods of the former Black Mage Village approaching them quickly. The trail to the small town, now expanded and modified since the Terran occupation, no longer misled would-be visitors. But yet, as Shoofie dropped them off and reluctantly let them leave her at the edge of the forest, Freya couldn't help but feel a strange ambiance coming from within its trees.

A few minutes after entering the forest, Amarant stopped. Freya noticed his halt a few steps later and she turned around to stare at him.

"What's wrong?"

He beckoned her closer and she took a few steps back toward him.

He closed the gap and whispered to her. "Are you truly expecting them to be honest with you?"

She couldn't quite understand why he was whispering, but she responded in kind. "I can only hope."

His frown deepened. "I think you're wasting your time. I guarantee they will all deny such a concept."

"It seems you believe that Terra is still alive," she grinned slightly.

"It doesn't matter what I believe. But I say these clones in here are all in a collective. They're of one mind. No single one will say anything different than the other."

"They aren't clones anymore!"

He looked at her sternly, his voice remaining low, unlike hers. "This forest watches and listens, don't be a fool. I'll remain at whatever inn they have here. You can go around asking questions. But mark my words."

She crossed her arms and gave him a look of disbelief. _He can be so negative. But yet I have ...strange feelings. Is it this forest? And why am I suddenly nervous? ...I feel... as if I'm not thinking clearly... seems the trees... are moving..._ She looked up at him.

He stared down at her. "Resist," he said aloud, his hand making a small motion in the air.

She blinked at him, her mind suddenly going blank. He'd cast a spell. Perhaps this forest _was_ still enchanted.

"You should hurry up before you conk out," Amarant declared at a normal volume. "You slept enough on the way here, I think it'd be a tremendous waste of time if you took another nap."

She frowned at him, turned on her heel and continued walking straight. _He most certainly believes Terra is still alive. Funny I never asked. And me? I don't have enough evidence. Heh. I've been around professors and doctors too long, it seems. He dislikes the Terrans, too. They are rather odd though. Or am I just chasing this theory to try and feel useful? ...Is this all some farce, some puppet game of a rich noble? But then I wouldn't be the only one pursuing this, would I? It wouldn't be such a secret. But no, no farce would convince people to kill themselves, would it? Could it?_

She felt miserable as the Village began appearing in between the tall evergreens.


End file.
